A Better Place : Part 1 - A Shared Hustle
by ytodd
Summary: Judy, Nick, and other fellow mammals in their day to day life in Zootopia after the event of the movie. Romance, drama, emotions, and maybe more hidden along the story. Who knows ? Though it's the first part of a long running story, this can perfectly stand up on its own. Mostly a blend of short stories that ended up becoming a long running story. The story is now complete.
1. 01 Fried fish with a side of regrets

**Hi guys, ytodd here. First chapter to ToaPMZ part 1.**

 **This means several things !**

 **\- Firstly, reading and understanding this story shouldn't require reading part 0, even if I highly encourage it (simply because I love it when people read my stuff, deep need of recognition, freudian complex and shit).**

 **\- Secondly, this will be longer than the prologue, maybe not in term of chapter number, but clearly in term of word count.**

 **\- Thirdly, updates will be less frequent. I'm thinking around twice a week.**

 **\- Fourstly, this being part 1, there WILL be a part 2. Long running story gon' be long.**

 **Buckle your seatbelt, the ride's about to get wild(e) !**

 **The author decline every responsibility in case of exposure to bad puns.**

* * *

"Where are we going Nick ?"

"It's a surprise"

They had just got down from the ZUG and were now walking side by side in the street of the Rainforest district. Judy had gotten used to see surprising things in the city. The infrastructure was a wonder to look at. Mammals of every size could find ways to get to every point with minimal risks. Of course the shortest ones had more chances to be crushed by the biggest ones, but everything was made in way that it could be prevented. Distinctive paths, underground passages, and even slides. In this part of the city, there were also waterways so that the marine mammals could use it as a mean of transportation, if they chose to do so. From an untrained eye, it could all look like utter chaos, but the rabbit could now discern the patterns in the crowd's movement. To her, it was a testimony to what unity could accomplish, even unconsciously.

"Are we there yet ?" asked Judy in an excited voice, mimicking a impatient kit. Nick had promised to make her officially meet Finnick, his only best friend beside her, and she was eager to talk with him for the first time.

"Yes, we are. Can you stop bouncing around, you're giving me a headache" Nick wasn't so sure he wanted his two friends to meet. They were polar opposits and he feared their personnalities would clash. Well he feared more coming from Finnick that Judy, the fennec wan't known for his calm temper.

"No can do. That's what we bunnies were made for." she said in a giggly tone, taking few exagerated jumping steps in front of him. He looked at her bouncing on the paving, glancing at her rump going up and down. He felt something inside him wake up. An incoherent primal deeply buried part. It scared him a little.

 _What the hell brain ? I'm not eating my friend._

* * *

They at last arrived before a little diner which could have known better days. The paint was chipping and the sign lacked a few letters. Its name could still be read though.

"Jack Rabbit Slim's ? Is that a joke ?"

"Nope, I don't know where the name comes from but they serve the best fried fish in the city. And they have a good carrot salad, if that's what you care for."

"You know, bunnies don't only eat carrots."

"I'm sure they don't."

They entered the diner, smell of cooking, frying and fresh vegetables filling their snouts.

"Over here Nick" shouted a deep voice. Finnick was sitting at a booth in a corner, a vixen waitress leaned toward him, an elbow on the table. The waitress took her tray, giving the newcomers a smile as she went back behind the bar.

"Who was your foxy friend ?" asked Nick, as he hopped on the benchseat.

"Rosie, the waitress, nice gal. She kept me company. Are you not introducing me to your date ?" he had said that while turning to face Judy, who had just seated next to Nick. She felt a warm sensation creeping on her face, trying to show none of it. If Nick had been fazed, his mask of coolness didn't chip a bit.

"Not my date. It's Judy, Judy Hopps. I think you already know about her."

"Shure I do, her face was all over the TV a few months ago. And ya told me lots about her. We also met once before remember ? Pawpsicle hustle and when she was looking for you. The name's Finnick, little miss. Nice to meet ya again."

"Nick told me a lot about you too, Finnick. Nice to meetcha again !"

They opened the menu. There wasn't a lot of choices. A half dozen fish-based and prey friendly burgers and the same number in salads. Judy feeled adventurous and chose a seitan burger with a side of carrot fries, Nick took a fish burger with fries, Finnick asked for the fish triple-bypass, no side dish.  
They had all placed their order and Finnick asked Judy "So, how much does Slick Nick get on yo nerves ?"

"Once you learn how to cope with the bad puns, there is not much to it."

"You know you love my humour, little punny."

Finnick looked at Nick. "Tha'wos bad, dude. Honest work is doing a number on you."

"Keep your venom, my humour is as perfect as my looks" Nick had rested his elbows on the back of his seat, a look of total confidence on his face. "What do yo do those days ?"

"Oh you know, the usual."

Judy looked at the little fox with an inquisitive look on her face "and what is this 'usual' ?"

"Bit of this, bit of that. Carrying goods, selling stuff..." evaded the fennec, a mask of honesty on his face.

 _I see where Nick has learnt how to hide his emotions._

"And you Nick, what do you do those days ?"

"Whatever the cops do. Give tickets to the taxpayers, run after the hardworking criminals, waste the public's money, that kind of thing- ouch" Judy had given him a punch in the ribs, and gave him a disaproving glance. She didn't like when he joked like that, mainly because she knew he was only half-joking. "Sorry Carrots"

"Sheesh, the lady gotcha, you hafta walk straight now."

The waitress came back with their order and gave them a soda refill on the house. Looking at the bar, they saw the cook bear give them a wave. Judy didn't like to get free stuff from her celebrity, but she understood that most people liked showing gratitude.  
She heard Nick make a strange noise.

"You're alright Nick ?"

"I just noticed. Um. I'm about to eat meat in front of you. Maybe I should have ordered something else."

"You won't make me incomfortable Nick, I've already seen your fangs. I even have had them around my neck."

"Wot ?" The fennec had his eyes wide open, looking alternatively to both of them.

 _That came out wrong._

Nick chuckled and wiggled his eyebrows. She could still see red creep on his face under his fur though. She herself suddenly felt warm at the idea, her own face slowly starting to burn.

"I-I mean, in the museum, when he had to fake killing me to trap Bellwether."

"Oh, that. Yeah Nick tol' me about it. A nice hustle tha' was."

The smell of the food was divine and they hungrily dug in. The seitan burger tasted weird but good, and the carrot fries had just the perfect crispy texture. The food price was ridiculous compared to the quality of the food and Judy promised herself to leave a huge tip. As they ate, they stayed mostly silent. Judy shot some glances at Nick, watching his fangs tear the fried fish, grease and sauce dripping down his muzzle. She felt weird feeling in her stomach again. There was fear. But there was something else also. More subtle but powerful, and at least as primal.

Everyone's plate was mostly empty. The little fennec had eaten up to every crumb of his meal and Judy wondered where he had put all of it.

"So Nick, now that we ate, I think I should tell you." Finnick had begun, a serious look on his face. Nick was waiting for him to continue, a happy sated looked on his snout. "your mother asked me for news about you. She didn't believe me when I told her you were a cop, but I ended up convincing her." Judy saw the slight shift on Nick's composure, his tail twitching behind him.

"You did good, buddy. Thanks." answered Nick.

"She's doin' fine by the way." the red fox didn't answer to that. Judy felt him stiffen on his seat. Still his expression didn't move."I think it's time ya went and talked ta her now." Finnick was looking at Nick straight in the eyes. The mood had totally shifted and everything in the primal side of Judy's brain screamed danger.

"That'd be good for both o' ya"

Nick had left his slumped posture, calmly taking a sip of his soda.

"Nah. I'm good." He had maintained eye contact with Finnick. The tension was still rising and Judy was looking for a way to defuse it. The silence between them was deafening, and the rabbit began to wonder if her heart would explode because of how much it pounded.

"Judy can you move ? I have to go take a leak." she got off the bench and he left the booth. All was left between her and Finnick was an awkward silence.

"What's this about his mother, Finnick ?" she finally asked.

"Not my place to tell kiddo." The little vulpine was looking at his drink.

"I know Nick's really private about his past, I'm sure there are reasons for it. But I'd like to help. He's my friend too." The fennec lifted his gaze from the table and looked at her, sadness in his eyes.

"It's a big messy pile of bullshit. I don't wanna lay that on ya."

"Let me be the judge of what I can handle, alright ?"

"Okay nosey little missy. Here is the deal" Began the fennec fox "Slick ran away from home after something that scarred him deeply, what it was I won't tell."

"The scout event." Finnick looked at her with a surprised look.

"He trusts ya more than I thought. Anyway, I found 'im two weeks after he ran from home, sleeping in a dumpster. I was kinda looking for him, I knew there was a new inexperienced pickpocket on mah turf. Wary people, they make for bad hustle victi-" he scoffed. "Anyway, I found him and he refused to tell me where he came from. Since I couldn't bring mahself to let the poor kid starve, I took him in an' taught him the only job I ever knew." If Judy had thought she would be happy to learn more about Nick's past, she was now realizing she had been wrong.

"I won't tell ya every detail, but as it happenned, the kid wos fucking talented. And being young and all, people tended to trust him mo-" he took another sip. He had to remember he was talking to a cop. "Two months in, he told me about his parents, asked me to give 'em part of his money and some letters. I told him he should go home, but he would have none of it, rambling about how it made no difference but that at least he wanted to help provide for them, that they deserved more than the poor lives they had and the worthless son they brought into the world.". Finnick felt he needed a stiffer drink. Too bad the most alcoholised thing sold here was light beer.

"I wos a coward and didn't insist. He wos the first friend I had in a long time. His parents wanted him back, but they said that if he was happy not seeing them a making a life fo' himself all was for the best." He scratched his eyes "If you want my opinion, the Wildes are a looney bunch wis' a twisted sense of logic. How can it be best for a kid to be raised by a hustling fennec and away from his parents". Judy thought Nick took his sweet time in the bathroom, but she wanted to know more.

"The kid wos making a haul everyday, and still sending most of it to his folks. And every two week I had to bring them the cashbag with a side of news and sometimes a letter from their kid. They didn't even touch the money. Well, his mother Vivienne didn't but-" He had stop in the middle of his sentence, looking at something behind Judy's seat. She turned around and saw a happily whistling Nick approach the booth. Judy noticed that a tear was about to drop from her right eye. She quickly smeared it.

"You guys having an interesting conversation ?"

"I wos telling her 'bout the pawmart hustle" Improvised the fennec fox.

"Hey, don't steal this one, I love to tell it !" Said Nick, a bit too enthusiastic.

"Well go ahead, I had just begun."

Nick put his paws on the table, striking a pose as was about to tell an epic tory.

"At the time, we were running with the Raving One"

"You partnered up with a rabbit ?" reacted Judy with a puzzled look on her face.

"What are you talking about Carrots, the Raving One was a fox like me."

"They totally looked alike" added Finnick "The other guy had a bit more of a squarish face and darker fur and couldn't give a straight smile to save his life".

"Yeah, I still remember his cackling laugh. Shivers down my spine, he gave me. What's he doing now ?"

"Oh you know, the usual." Fennec winked.

"Continuing. So we had this con, an idea of Finnick, where we would go and fill two enormous shopping cart with everything we could fit in it. The two had to have the exact same things inside it. The Raving One would go first, pay for everything, give me the receipt and get out. Five minutes later I would come to the same checkout with one more item and the receipt saying that I forgot a thing the first time around and that I didn't want to leave my cart unchecked. A charming smile, and it would work everytime."

"As long as we did not do it too often in the same place."

"That's clever" said Judy, with a disaproving but amused look.

"I thought so too" answered Nick, as if he was completely oblivious to the annoyed face of his partner.

* * *

They had left the restaurant and since it was a beautiful day, they decided to go home on foot. It took them about an hour, and they had to shelter themselves from the rain in an electronic shop. Nick browsed around for a new phone, but found nothing he liked.

As they were approaching Judy's place, she had slowly mustered the courage to talk to Nick about his parents. She knew he wouldn't say anything right now, but she had to tell him he could open up to her, even if it wasn't today. The fox looked up a the Grand Pangolin Arms building.

"Sheesh, Judy, this place is a dump."

"It's cheap."

"I hope so, or else you're getting ripped off. You want me to come renegotiate a better contract ?"

"Nope, I'm good, thanks"

An awkward silence slowly crept between them. She let it drag a bit and then sighed. "Nick, I'd like to say something."

"If it's about my parents, drop it Carrots. I don't feel like talking about it" The confident mask was up. No cracks. Just Nick.

"Nick, it's important" She protested.

"Carrooots" He cut, lifting a finger.

"Please Nick. It's not about them, it's about us !"

 _What about us ? What does it have to do with us Carrots ?_

"Go ahead."

"I know you don't like talking about your past. I don't know much about it, but from I could gather, it wasn't pretty."

"Way to understate it. Are you finished ?" The confident grin was present on his face, but not in his voice.  
She took his paw.

"I know you trust me, and I trust you. You're my partner and my friend. If you ever need to talk about it, know that I'm here for you. I want to be here for you. So please, don't shut me out of your problems. How you feel is important to me."

His eyes were trapped in the pool of amethyst that was her gaze. He felt something inside, something sad and happy at the same time. It felt like gratitude. It felt like longing. It felt like something long forgotten. The mask was at an inch to crack.

"Hey Carrots, I'm okay. I don't want you to worry about me." He made a pause. "Emotional bunnies..." he sighed. She lightly punched his shoulder. "See you tommorrow, slick." with a smile, she turned around and went inside the building.

"Not if I see you first, Judy" his voice was but a whisper.

A feeling ot unbearable loneliness washed down on him. He had turned his life around, become a cop, become someone he could at last be proud of.

 _Why don't I feel good know ? What is wrong with me ?_

He began to make his way toward his own appartment building. The thirty minute walk felt like an eternity as he was lost in thoughts and feelings he had kept bottled up for years.

* * *

 **Hope you liked what you read !**

 **There was a reference to a movie by a unknown director, making small independant movies, going by the name of Quentin Tarantino. Will you be able to find it ?**


	2. 02 Godfatherhood and Birthday

**Hello reader !**

 **First of all I'd like to thank and answer to the people who have left reviews.**

 **To Foxlover91 : Thanks for your praise, nice to read positive reviews !**

 **To Qsim0t0 : I'm glad you like my version of the Finnick/Judy interaction. I didn't really want to do anything different, it just came naturally in place. To be honest I was more afraid that the lore-dump on Nick's past would feel forced. As for Judy not being a law inforcement robot, I had to rewrite this part a bit. In the first draft, she was way more judging, but I didn't think it would fit in her relationship withe Nick and her potential friendship with Finnick.**

 **Now, this chapter will be a bit long.**

 **Though the first part of the chapter is important, it wasn't long enough to be a full chapter and I didn't want to cut Clawhauser's part in the middle.**

 **I hope it won't be too confusing, have fun reading it !**

* * *

It itched, it was stiff. It restrained his movement and he hated it.  
Nick was wearing the tuxedo he had rented for the occasion. It was simple, black vest, black trousers, white shirt and a bow-tie he had asked Koslov to tie when he had arrived. Despite his looks, and annoyed expression, the white bear had complied, wanting everything to be perfect for the event. He himself had ironed his Clawdidas tracksuit for the occasion.

They were waiting near the limo that was parked in front of Judy's building while they were waiting for her. Nick was wondering how they looked like, discreetly looking around to see how people reacted. Most people switched curb as they so them.

 _We look like mobsters._

Nick took out his reflective-glasses and put on a confident grin, completing the picture.

Judy got out of her building. She was wearing a short pink dress over black leggings. It complimented her figure nicely. Nick clenched his jaw, happy that the glasses he wore concealed his staring.

"Hey Nick, you look foxy"

"You're not bad yourself, officer carrots" He opened the limo's door to her as any gentlemammal would have done.

The limo driven by koslov took them through the city, to tundratown, at Big's estate. They parked right in front of the habitation, a massive bear opening the car's door for them an leaning over them as they were making their way to the massive house's door, as to protect them from the falling snow.

They already had come there in another situation, they felt it was in another life. In Nick's case it was through. The house felt way more welcoming now, there were balloons and they could hear music playing the background. The bear led them into a large room. In the center was a large table where were hosted the festivities. Nick had missed the baptism, and FruFru had insisted he'd come to meet his godchild having sort of a ceremony for the occasion.

"Judyyyyy !" came a squeele. Frufru had jumped from the table into the doe's open arms. "Have you come to arrest my dad ?" It was her usual greeting joke.

"Not today. Not anytime soon I hope." she chuckled

"So do I" came a voice with an heavy accent. "How are you doing ?"

"Fine mister Big, and you ?" She gave him a kiss on each cheek that he returned.

"I'm doing well my dear."

The shrew turned toward the fox. "And you son ? How is life on the force treating you ?" They both kissed cheeks as the fox answered. "Better than the street."

"Then all is well."

"Come see your future godchild !" squeeled Frufru to the vulpine, grabbing him by a finger. He followed, going around the table.

The kits were minuscule in their cradle, even smaller than any of Nick's finger. That meant he had no way of holding them. He was relieved, he never knew how to handle kids this young.

"That's Judith, Vito and Nicholas." she pointed toward each toddler.

"Daw, Judy is so cute !" Nick had said, loudly enough so that his partner would hear it. He had put his paws on his cheek in an exagerated expression. He glanced at Judy that discreetly waved her fist at him, promising a punch to his shoulder.

"I know right ? They all are !" answered Fru-fru, oblivious to the joke.

They, and all the guests were assembled around the crib that had been put near an end of the table. Mr. Big was raising his glass, beginning his speach.

"To my grandchildren, Judith, Vito and Nicholas, a wish that they will live long and happily." Everyone raised their glasses.

"To their godparents, Judy, Frank, and Nick, who was introduced back to the Family." Everyone cheered. Nick gently kissed the forehead of his godson as was the tradition in the family.

"And to the Family, may it stay strong and prosper." They all drank.

Judy wasn't sure she should drink to the health of the biggest crime family in the city, but then again, Fru Fru was like a sister to her, and she really liked mister Big.

"So now, it's official" said Nick to mister Big. "I'm forgiven." He had understood the real reason he was the kid's godfather, beyond the fact that he had greatly helped the predator cause, and that he was friend with Fru Fru too, Was that the mob boss wanted him back into the family.

"You still owe me a wool rug."

* * *

The fat Cheetah was at his desk. It had been a good work day. Well half-day. He had come to work at 2AM, covering for the end of the nightshift. The officer had had a bad case of food poisonning and had to go to the hospital. It was supposed to be Clawhauser's day off.

But he didn't mind, having been promissed a full day off in return of him coming for only half a shift.  
There was a bit of a problem though. The cheetah was hungry. And he was his full cheerful self when he was hungry. He was only half-cheerful.

But he didn't mind, he was trying a new diet, and what better way to start it than missing on a few delicious, suggary, sweet, glazed donuts.

Only an hour and he would be able to pack up, go home for a quick night and get on with his free day. He took out his phone, browsing through furbook when a voice came from the emergency radio.

"Patrol 1123, Wolford speaking. We have a 11-81, with 11-41 at the angle of the 48th and 51th in downtown District. Looks like a 481, 505 with possible 502. We're on pursuit on the 51th."

Accident caused by a possibly drunk drive, passengers of another car needed rescue. Clawhauser immediately reacted, sending an ambulance at the place of the incident. The officers were pursuing the perp.

"10-4 1123, do you require assistance ?"

Another voice came from the radio.

"Patrol 1258, Rhinowitz speaking. We have a 505 with possible 502 on the 51th, Sahara square. Beginning pursuit"

"10-4 1258"

Clawhauser pushed a switch on the radio, both car could now hear him and eachothers.

"Precinct One, Clawhauser speaking to 1123 and 1258. You're both on pursuit of the same 505. Be careful and good luck."

"10-4 Precinct One. Race you, 1258" came the excited voice of officer Wolford.

"10-4 Precinct One. Focus Wolford" answered the cold voice of RhinoWitz.

Clawhauser seperated back the channels with a nervous smile. He was always nervous when a code came in. That meant risks for his fellow officers. He loved them like family and couldn't bear to see harm come to them. But he was their lifeline, and he would never let them down. Better him on the front desk than anyone to support them.

He began filling the paperwork for his fellow officers, waiting for the radio to give him news. Hopefully good news. A few minutes later, the radio called again.

"Patrol 1123, Wolford speaking. We caught the 505. It was indeed a 502. 10-72 but everyone's fine, no 11-71. 390D, we had to tranq him. 11-42, we are bringing him in. And we won the race again 1258. Please note that this officer wants a raise. Over and out."

The drunk had taken out a gun but they had tranq'd him before he could use it.

"10-4, 1123" giggled the cheetah "Please don't overload the channel with the rest of your nonsense. Over and out." He switched channel. "Precinct One, Clawhauser speaking. The 505 has been apprehanded. You can get back to regular patrolling."

"10-4, Precinct One. Over and out."

Clawhauser sighed. Everything went fine. He had no reason to worry. The suspect had been armed but taken care of. The cheetah looked at the time again, only ten minutes had passed. He continued filling the paper, hoping what remained of the hour would pass quickly. He suddenly heard sound of hooves on the tiling coming from behind him. He didn't need to turned raound to recognize chief Bogo's step. He didn't lift his gaze, still filling his paper.

"Chief, how are you doing ?"

"Fine officer." He had concern in his voice.

"Do you need something ? Is everything alright ?" The cheetah didn't look around, still working on his paper, he liked to look professionnal when the chief was around.

"Yes and yes. Do you still have your network access to the record ?"

The cheetah lost a bit of his cheerfulness with the memories at his horrible time in the basement.

"Sure, you didn't order to revoke it yet."

"Could you look for and send me the file from this case please ?" He put a piece of paper with a reference number on it on the desk.

"Of course chief !" answered the feline, happy to be of use.

He immediately went into action, looking through the unkept database. He wondered why chief Bogo was staying here, looking over his shoulder. It made him a bit anxious. He also wondered why the chief didn't simply give him a call or send him a message. He was the chief, he if wanted to come down and see his officer, he could, but the absurd thought that the chief came here especially to see him made him giggle out loud.

"Found it sir ! Want me to print it ?"

"It won't be necessary. Send me the link in an e-mail."

The feline was about to get back to his paper but the chief hadn't move. He turned around.

"You're sure everything is alright sir ?"

The chief was holding an open box of donuts. All were the same so that the cheetah wouldn't have to choose which one he would eat first. He had remembered the party's lesson.  
Every resolution he had for is diet flew away as the feline's stomach growled. He kept the squeeling to a minimum.

"Oh chief you shouldn't have !"

"You came to work on the night of your day off." stated the the buffalo.

He, like the other officers was always impressed by and a bit afraid of the cape buffalo.

Clawhauser knew that his colleague liked to joke about the chief being a big softy. But he never joked about it, because it was simply not true. To Clawhauser, the chief was simply a caring mammal, strong enough to push every officer to become the best version of themselves.

He took the box of donuts and gave one to the chief with a smile. The hooved mammal accepted it and then looked at his watch.

"You're out in thirty-four minutes. Have a nice day officer."

"Will do, chief"

The cape buffalo left, chomping on the donut. It was too sweet for his taste.

But he didn't care.

* * *

Clawhauser had just woken up. Home at 6:30 AM, he had taken a three hour nap, so he would still have the full day to himself. He stretched, bending in every direction, his fat figure more flexible than one could think at first glance. He took a quick shower, already thinking about the long the bath he would take in the evening. As a breakfast, he ate an only donut, not wanting to be sate for the brunch he was about to go to. He put on the clothes he had chosen the evening before. A light and dark blue square shirt with a jacket, and a simple jean. He took his satchel and threw it on his shoulder, ready to go. As he left, he heard the snorting of Wolford and MacHorn coming from each of their rooms.

As Clawhauser walked in the street, he happily waved at the people he recognized, mostly shop workers. They wave back, the chubby cat's good mood being really contagious.  
He had taken the ZUG to Savannah Central, wlking in the hot street his distracted gaze flying from a thing to another. Suddenly he heard an enthousiast voice calling him from his right.

"Beeen !"

It was a lean and athletic female cheetah. She threw herself into Clawhauser's open arms. They hugged themselves tightly. She was a head taller than him.

"Oh, I missed you big guy."

"I missed you too little sis."

They split up and he looked at her.

"You've gotten bigger, Jenny" he giggled. "soon you'll be taller than me."

"You've gotten fatter, Ben" she answered " soon you'll be larger than me."

"I hear jealousy" he smiled, but he looked down to his belly with a worried look "Perhaps I did gain a bit though"

"If I remember well, I bought you those clothes."

"Yes ?"  
"I chose them a bit tight on purpose" she put a hand on his shoulder, observing him. "They fit you perfectly. You've even lost a bit."

A huge grin brighten the chubby cheetah's face. "The diet's working." He liked himself as he was, the chubbyness didn't worry him and he knew some mammal found it attractive. Too bad most of them were hippos and elephant. But he was conscious of the medical risk that came with this body type.  
They went inside a buffet restaurant name Tiana's Palace, specialised in food from New-Clawrlean. The officer had chosen it because he knew his sister loved spicy food. Him not so much, but there was lots of other pepper-free specialties.

The ceiling was so high, that they had to bend their neck to see it. Half of the walls were made of red bricks, the other were wooden, painted in a golden brown, and on them were hanged a multitude of paintings. Some of them had prices, patrons could actually buy them. But what impressed the most were the huge crystal and copper chandeliers.

"I'm not sure I can afford this place, Ben."

"You don't need to. I'm inviting you."

"With a cop salary ?"

"Do I need to remind you that I don't have a rent to pay and that I have two flat-mates that rent-out part of my flat ? Besides, I forbid you to deny me the pleasure of spoiling my little sis."

"Fine." she laughed "you'll make an unsufferable brat out of me."

"The damage is already done."

A waiter came and showed them their table. The settled their stuff, took a pair of plates and went toward the buffet. As he saw he sister eat, he was glad they restrained themselves from turning the meal into a competition. He wasn't sure he could have won.

"I can't understand where you put all this." he said, in amazement.

"Sports. Lots of it. If it was the season of competition, I wouldn't eat that much."

"You're still aiming for the Pawlympics ?"

"More than ever."

"Isn't fifteen a bit young for this ?" He joked.

"I'm seventeen since wednesday, and you know it."

"Yup, happy birthday little-sis" He took a big paper bag out of his satchel. Inside it was a craft-covered box.

"You shouldn't have Ben." she squeeled, opening the present. It was a shoebox. "No you didn't !"

 _Yes I di-id._

It was a pair of On Clawd. Her mouth was agape before the present.

"If you don't like it, I still have the receipt" She jumped at his neck, hugging him as all the other patrons were staring.

"Jenny, can't breathe." came his strangled voice. She let go and gave him a big smooch on the nose.

"You're the best brother ever".

It was more than sibling love between the two. Ben and Jenny's parents were hard working, and loaded, but barely present. As the big brother was ten year's older, he had mostly raised his sister himself, taking the responsability as serious as it could be. She was more strong-headed than he was, but her heart was just as big. As a result their link was unbreakable. Ben adored his sister and would have given her everything she wanted. All she wanted was to shine in his eyes, realizing her potential at the fullest.

"Seriously though, here is the receipt. If they don't fit you can switch for another pair until the end of next week. It's a gift, so do NOT look at the price."

* * *

They were back on the street, the chubby cheetah had paid for their meal, a sum that his sister didn't want to think about.

"Is it okay if we hit a couple of shops ? There is this new record-shop that I really want to see."

"Of course Ben. But no more gifts. I'm embarassed enough as it is."

"But it was only a teeny-tiny pair of shoes." pouted the tubby cheetah.

"I don't need to look at the receipt to know how much those cost. No. More. Gifts. Or else I'll have my coach give you a personnal training"

"How personnal ?" He had an unchaste grin on his face.

"You're impossible"

They first stopped at a pop-culture shop. There was a gazelle's figurine new series, and the big cat absolutely wanted one of them. Along with other memorabilias. He stepped into the boutique, humming a famous song from the aforementionned artist. He took his time browsing every Gazelle-related article. A tiger approached him.

"Can I help you sir ?" he asked in warm voice. The tiger was wearing a slim jean, and the shop's t-shirt, tight around his muscular build. The tiger reminded Clawhauser of Gazelle's back up dancers. Clawhauser had to fight to keep from staring.

"I wish you could, Joe" the cheetah had glanced at the nametag. "But I'm not really sure I now what I'm looking for"

"Perhaps I can be of counsel, then"

"Why not", smiled the plump cat. "If I was looking for something really particular about Gazelle, what in this store should grab my attention ?"

The tiger took a few steps looking around, took a mug and glanced at this client, hesitated and put it back.

"How much of a real fan are you ?"

"I possess a copy of the Magia album. First Pawlombian edition."

"Give me two minutes" The tiger disappeared through the door, going into the back of the shop.

"You found something interesting bro ?"

"Dunno yet, the clerk has gone to fetch something." a few seconds later, the ripped feline had come back with a box the size of a vinyl record. He presented it to the plump cat. It was some kind of framed enlarged picture of the magia's album cover. At second glance it was made of a lots of separated layer of different paper, making a nice embossed picture. Clawhauser squeeled, making every head in the shop turn in his direction.

"Oooooow, this thing must be hanged to my walls, how much is it ?"

"15 bucks. We received a bunch of them a year ago and they never sold."

"I'll take it." He snatched the picture from the tiger's paw. "Thanks Joe" he cheerfuly winked, getting back to looking at the figurines. The Tiger kindly smiled and got back behind this counter.

"What did you ask him so that he would unearth that ?" Asked his sister.

"I asked him what in this store should grab my attention."

"You sure grabbed his."

"What ?"

"Did you see how he was looking at you ?"

"What ?" he glanced at the tiger. Who distractly waved at them."You're imagining things, sis."

"Of course I am. I'll let you browse." she let him alone, straddling into the boutique, discreetly approaching the counter.

* * *

"I think I've found something that might interest you, Ben" She gave him a piece of paper, a line of number was written on it.

"What is it ?" The plump cheetah had chosen what figure he would buy, he was craddling it along with the framed picture. He took out his hand and looked at the paper.

"The sexy shopkeeper's contact."

Clawhauser mouth slightly openned, he glanced at the the feline who waved at him again, an embarassed smile on his face. Was it suddenly really hot in here ?

"Oh. Okay. Tha-thanks. I think I should go pay for those now." The cheetah approached the counter really slowly. His face was burning. He put what he had chosen on the counter. Behind him, his sister was silently cheering on him.

"You found everything you wanted ?" asked the shop keeper, trying to restrain himself from blushing or showing too wide a grin.

"And more" blurted the cheetah, giving him his credit card, his eyes firmly fixed on the counter. He looked like he was trying to make his face disappear into his neck-chub.

"That will be 40 dollars sir." came the warm voice of the seller.

The cheetah paid and they exited the boutique.

* * *

"What just happenned ?" The pudgy cat had an expression of utter disbelief above a nervous smile.

"The Gazelle back-up dancer lookalike gave you his number."

"I was so embarassed. Oh god, I can't ever come back here again." He hide his burning face into his hands.

"And break the poor guy's heart ? You wouldn't dare."

"Why did you do this Jenny ?" he asked in a meek voice.

"My favorite brother deserved no less than the best article in the shop."

He looked at the piece of paper, holding it with a trembling paw. "What should I do with this ?" it was half rhetorical, his sister answered anyway, taking him by the shoulders.

"You send him a text to say hi, and you fix a date in a nice coffee-shop. Or go see a movie with him. Just go with the flow." He put the paper in his smartphone case and stored it back in his satchel. "Wasn't there a new record shop you wanted to visit ?"

* * *

They walked a few minute until Ben made them turn in a rear-street. A little shop was hidden between two garage door. As they entered, a smell of pot hit their face. It was clear that the shop itself had been set inside a garage. It was either an hommage to the early punk-rock bands, or the owner hadn't found anything else. In both case, it gave the place a sense of authenticity.

There was nothing but rock records, mostly old ones, which pleased the chubby cheetah, he had only a few in this genra, and wanted to complete his collection.

"Hello" greeted the vulpine shopkeeper in a coarse voice. Even the guy smelled like old rock. It was so authentic Clawhauser had to hold back a squeele. "Hello"

He began browsing the vynils, losing track of time, as his sister looked at the covers in a distracted fashion.  
He had found a few interesting things. Early records of David Pawie and the Clawing stones. Even an old Fang Division record. He was still searching through a pile of unsorted vinyls when he heard his sister's voice.

"I like this one's design" she was holding a copy of Pink Snoud – The Wall. The border of the box were a bit worn but it seemed to be in good condition otherwise.

"Can I ?" She gave it to him and he took out the record, revealing an orange colored Disc.

"Holy Shit." he gasped. She looked at him. Ben had sweared. Ben never sweared.  
He put back the disc in the sleeve as ceremoniously as he could, and went straight to the seller, his records in hand.

"How much ?"

"One thousand and seven hundred bucks" stated the seller.

"What the fuck ?" Jenny had sweared, but he let it slide, having done so himself less that fifteen seconds ago.

"One thousand bucks."

"Are you kidding man ? You know what it is ? One Thousand six hundred."

"The pocket is worn, the disc sticker has bleached a bit. One thousand." Jenny had never seen her brother haggle. It was the most serious she ever heard him speak.

"Seriously man ? One thousand five hundred"

"One thousand and one hundred, you know no one else ready to spend this much will walk in here."

"You're bleeding me man. One thousand four hundred"

"Only if you give me the other records with it"

"Cash. No credit, no check."

They shook on it.

"Jenny could you come over here please ?" Still agape, she approached. Her brother put all the records between her hands, The Wall hidden in the middle of them. "You don't let anyone look at those, you don't let anyone even approach you. I'm back in one minute." He rushed through the store at a speed she never thought he could possess. Less than fifty seconds later he was back with a handful of cash, a perfectly composed expression on his face. He put the banknote in the fox's paw, who took his time counting them.

"Nice doing business with you."

As they got out of the store, the fat cat slumped against the wall, slowly sliding to the floor. He was winded, his breath made a wheezing sound.

"What is this record Ben ?" She asked, puzzled.

"This is- hhh – The Wall- hhh – orange – hhh – vinyl version -hhh."

"It's rare ?"

"Only – hhh – Eight hundred – hhh – worldwide."

"Okay, this is rare."

The cheetah stay slumped for a whole ten minutes while his sister had sat beside him. Once his breath had gone back to relatively normal level and most of the red had disappeared from underneath his face's fur, she helped him.

"You alright Ben ?"

"We were supposed to be celebrating your birthday and I got more gifts than you. I'm more than alright."

"I think I'll still accompany you home, You don't look so good. Did you buy this bike-machine I talked to you about ?"

"Nope, not yet, I'm thinking about it."

They went back to the ZUG, Clawhauser had a staggering bounce his step, his sister holding him straight when he threatened to stumble.

* * *

 **To those wondering, ZUG stands for 'Zootopia UnderGround' even though parts of the track are street-level or above. 'Zug' is also the german name for train.**

 **Now, since I'm not really familiar with them, I hope my use of the police codes wasn't too heavy or beside their traditional use. It was fun to do, and I incorporated explications on what it meant so you wouldn't be lost. Was it easy to understand ? Should I go more easy on the stuff ?**


	3. 03 Traffic Incident

**Heya, it's me, the dude who writes this. Back to Judy and Nick. Seems that last chapters trailed off a bit too much from our favorite duo.**

 **Befoe we start, I want to thank those who read my work and answer to those who reviewed it.**

 **At Foxlover91 : I thought the start was kind of messy, but glad you liked it. About the heavy foxus on Clawhauser and his sister, in the beginning, it wasn't my goal to write so much about this but I got caught in and since I found it fun I left it taht way. Funny thing is, Ben's sister won't be important in the long run. it was more charactr development for Ben than anything else :)**

 **gonekrazy3000 : Finnick and Judy had met before, I just screwed in the continuity and forgotten about it since it wasn't made important in the movie. I made the correction to the first chapter. Thanks for pointing that out !**

 **And now, without further ado, the third chapter !**

* * *

One of the perk of working at Precinct on was that most of the patrol Nick and Judy were put on took place in the Downtown District. The climate was mild, so they didn't either needed big jackets or their summer uniforms. Still there was a downside. The people of downtown were way more irritable than any other district. City centers would do that to you.

The duo had been called to an accident at an intersection. No-one had been injured but the discution between the two drivers had begun to get heated and an onlooker had called the cops. They pulled over near the scene of the incident and looked at the two cars. One was a blue convertible, the other a dark-green cruises which was way less damaged.

Each one had come from a different street. It seemed the cruiser had come from the right, crashing in the rear right wing of the convertible, and had sent it skidding across the intersection.

"You ruined my car, you stupid pig !" shouted a bull, near the blue vehicle. "Couldn't you look where you were going ?". He was facing a boar with an annoyed look on his face, who was holding assurance papers.  
As Nick and Judy approached the scene, two other police cruiser pulled over, the officer went and tried to regulate the now hectic circulation. Soon, there would be barriers around the scene, but for now their priority was to take the civilian out of the road.

"Please leave the road, it's not safe here." said Judy in a calm but commanding voice.

None of the two people even glanced at them, the bull keeping shouting at the boar who slowly looked more and more annoyed.

"ZPD" she said louder taking out her plaque "Could you two gentlemammal please leave the road ?" They both turned to her, disbelief on their faces, and then complied. Nick could already tell those two were going to be a handful.

"I take the bull, you take the boar" said the fox.

Nick asked his version to the horned mammal. He spoke his part with a look of mistrust on his face. Nick was used to the attitude and paid it no mind. As the bull told it, he simply had begun to drive after the light had turned green when out of nowhere the the cruiser had come and crashed in him, surely passing at red light. He added that he was going to miss an important meeting because of it.

Judy asked his version to the more calm boar. The light had just turned green so he hadn't need to brake too much before crossing the intersection. Then out of nowhere, at a speed way to great, the blue convertible rushed past his nose, coming, from the left. He had just had the time to turn the wheel, his hoof to slow to push the pedal, trying, and failing to avoid collision.

Nick and Judy compared both version, looking at how the car were placed on the street.

"Both versions are plausible." Began Judy. "But, despite his attitude, the bull's version seem to be more logical"

"I don't know, look at the car. If the cruiser had really gone as quick as he was saying, it should have spun way more."

They were both puzzled, there was no way of knowing who was telling the truth. And in those kind of situations, the witnesses statement wouldn't help. The details they would need wouldn't have been noticed. And to make matters worse, none of the drivers had a dash-cam.

 _Cams._

 _Street cameras._

"Judy ?" called the fox, pointing at the corner of a building. The carmera he was showing her was perfectly placed to have filmed both trafic-lights.

"Of course Nick. Can you make them wait while I ask Clawhauser to send me the feed ?"

The fox went back to calm down the two drivers, their conversation had started again and was slowly heating up.

"You passed right under my nose. You ran the red light." The boar looked calm but he was heavily breathing through his snout.

"And I maintain that you don't know what you are talking about." The bull had put a hoof on the hog's large chest.

"Gentlemammal, please calm down." Nick had put on the 'defusing a situation' mask, the one with the benevolent smile. "You're both fine and unhurt, I think we can all be thankful for that."

The boar said nothing but the bull answered in an angry tone.

"And what's this ? First a rabbit, now a fox ? If they had sent real officers, the situation would already be resolved."

Nick switched to the nice but firm mask.

"Sir, me and officer Hopps over there are as much cops as any other else. Please calm down."

"Say what you want, I know of the mammal inclusion initiative. Your kind has no place in the ZPD."  
Nick took out his notepad and a pen.

"If not for the meddling of our good mayor, the likes of you would never make it as officers."

Nick began scribbling, the notepad tilted just enough so that the large mammal couldn't see what he was writing.

"No way you could have passed the police exams without her pushing for it."

Nick had almost flinched at that. He continued scribbling. His gaze was firmly planted in the bulls eyes. His mask was now a cold and professionnal expression.

"What are you writing here fox, you think your little notes can put me down ?"

Scribble, scribble, scribble.

"You can't do anything to me, you pelt, I know people." he said in an assured voice.

Scribble, scribble, scribble.

"You're losing your time"

Scribble, scribble, scribble.

"Really, you can stop writing know." His voice had slowly lost its assured tone.

Scribble, scribble, scribble.

"I said you can stop writing."

Scribble, scribble, scribble

"Stop writing !" Shrieked the bull. He had lifted a hoof. Nick raised a stern brow.

Scribble.

The bull hesitated.

Scribble.

He left his arm fall down.

Scribble.

Nick let the corner of his mouth grin, showing carnivorous fangs to the bull so that only him could see them. The large mammal sighed in defeat just as Judy was coming back.

"I have the video feed. Sorry mister Bullroy, it seems you run the red light." She showed them her phonescreen and at the bull expression, one could see he perfectly knew it all along. "We'll need you both to come to the precinct to give your full statement on the incident". There was no way Nick and Judy's cruiser was big enough for the mammals, they turned them over to Rhinowitz who was helping to regulate the circulation and took his place.

The work was simple, but they had to stay standing for long periods, regularly stopping car that didn't respect their instruction. Not soon enough for their taste, a tow truck had come to take away the crashed vehicle. As they rested in their patrol car, Judy asked.

"What was the bull saying to you that you were so eager to write ? Was it important ?" He gave her the notepad explaining.

"Not really. It's a little trick that Blackfur taught me. If a civilian starts to be disrespectful you just take out your notepad and start writing. You can write anything, the trick is that he doesn't know what exactly you're doing. In my case, I usually note what they say. Shut them up in a minute, but it doesn't work on drunk or drugged mammal, it mostly make them angrier. Plus I don't want to waste energy correcting stupid bigotted mammals."

She looked at the notepad, her eyes widening.

"He really said that ?"

"Yeah, why ? It's not the worst thing I heard. And my pelt is clearly red, he did not get it all wrong."

"The mayor part, I mean. That's low. I now your worked harder than any mammal to get there."

Nick stayed silent, for a bit, pondering what to answer. He had meant to talk about it for a long time now, and he hadn't had the occasion yet. Now was as goob as any.

"That doesn't really mean shit if my hardest isn't up to the part, though." the mask of coolness was in place,like he didn't really cared about what he was about to drop.

"What are you talking about ?" she asked, with a suprised expresion.

He told her about the last question that had been asked of him during the last interview of the police academy. Quoting it, as it had engraved itself in his memory

"What if I told you that Mayor Swinton expressly asked for you to get into Precinct One. That no matter the deliberation of this jury you would be transferred to it. What would be your thoughts on the matter, mister Wilde ?"

Her surprise turned into shock and disbelief.

 _Shouldn't have told her. Dumb fox._

"So now you see Carrots. I'm a cop. I should be proud of myself. I proved everyone wrong after all. But chances are, it's just all a lie. I'm just a byproduct of some political bullshit. Sure I'm working my ass off helping undeserving and resentful mammals, I'm trying to make the world a better place with you. And it's one of the most wonderful thing that ever happenned to me. But it feels wrong. I'm still not sure I belong."

The mask hadn't broken. It showed little cracks that even Judy had trouble discerning. How could he be saying those things and showing so little emotions ?

She stayed silent a moment, taking in all that he had said. Then she began speaking.

"No, Nick. I've seen you work. You're a good cop. Even if, and I highly doubt that, the mayor had meddled so you could become a cop, she did good. Because you are a good cop. I'm sure you'll get better at this than you ever was at hustling. After all, I hustled you. I know what I'm talking about" she joked. "You shouldn't care about what that stupid bull was saying. You're great at not caring about what people think of you."

 _I didn't Carrots, but now I do. Why do I care ? Why, now that everything is supposed to be so great._

"And if you're still not sure, you can still ask the chief if it's true. You can be sure he will tell you the truth." he had thought about it, but he still couldn't bring himself to it. The truth scared him.

It was the end of the patrol. They got into the precinct's parking lot. As left of the car, Judy asked.

"You haven't told me what you answered to the question."

"What do you think Carrots ? I told them that all that I wanted was to be at Precinct One, no matter the way."

 _You're lying Nick. I know you well enough to know that's not what you said._

"Should've guessed."

They went their separate way, each of them going home. Judy was happy still. He had opened to her. Shared with her one the things that ate at him. She knew it would still be a long road before he would be completely comfortable sharing everything with her, if they ever reached that point. But still, they were making progress.

Nick was happy too. He had feared Judy's reaction, but as always she had showed him only kindness and support. She was like that with everyone, no reason she wouldn't be like that with him. He felt stupid to have doubted her. Glancing at the setting sun, he made the resolution to learn to be more trusting, if not for his sake, at least for hers.

* * *

 **OMG what is happenning ? Where do comes all this self-doubt ? I hope it's understandable to you if you have skipped part 0.**

 **This chapter was a bit short, but writing more about the matter would've spread it too thin, don't you think ?**


	4. 04 Eventful Evenings

**Hi there.**

 **First, review's answer :**

 **Foxlover91 : About the way Nick handled the guy, it's a reference to a movie. I found it fitting that he'd use something clever and a bit devious like this. I'm trying to show Nick making efforts to open himself to his friend. Glad you like my work.**

 **Now, I wish you a good read. I really had fun writing all this.**

* * *

He was late. He had promised to join her at the restaurant but his work had taken longer than he had anticipated. He was trying not to run, not to be too excited. The satchel he was carrying in his left hand bounced against his leg, sometimes scraping the floor but he didn't care. He was actually happy that she asked to see him. Sure, he was gonna come see her eventually, but still. It was nice.

He was late. She knew he was going to be. Punctuality wasn't his forte. She had called to meet him at the restaurant. The place was by no mean nice, but she liked the mood. She knew most of the people here as it was just across the street from her appartment and she had work here on and off for the last twenty years.

It was a simple diner, called Mr Smiley's. The last thing you could call the place was fancy, and the fox felt a bit overdressed. Still, he pushed the door, hearing the tinkling of a bell. Looking around, she saw her, already sitted in a corner, looking distractly at the passing cars through the window. She was wearing a simple dark green robe under a light jacket, highlighting her lean frame.

"Hey Vi." The fennec fox hopped on a sit, facing her. "Sorry, I'm late."

She silently smiled, looking at him. The little vulpine was wearing his brown cargo pants, but had put on a short-sleeved cream shirt, with a black tie that he had found in Nick's forgotten stuff. The mix was strange but it suited him.

"Hey Fin, don't worry, I've not been here for long."

The silence grew between them, and they let it install itself for a bit. Finnick didn't really know why she had called him here or why he had accepted to come. Well he had one, but it wasn't really his own. Vivienne felt conflicted, she felt a bit of resentment toward the small mammal. She had tried to convince herself as she was waiting for him that it was the reason why she had called him here. To lay on him all the negative emotions that she felt. But it wasn't it, and she knew what was this thing, gnawing at the back of her mind.

"What will you have, miss Wilde ?" An hippo waitress had cut their thoughts. Her voice was tired and jaded.

"Burger and fries combo with coke." Answered the vixen.

"Same for me." They gave her the folded menu, which they didn't even look at.

With the waitress gone, the silence turned awkward. Finnick chose to broke it.

"How's the food here ?"

"Cheap." Deadpan. No emotional cue.

He chuckled. "Sheesh that bad ? If I knew ya'd make me eat at place like 'dat, I wouldn't have moved my ass."

She chuckled back, setting a better mood between them.

"What are you up to these days ?"

"Oh, ya know, the usual."

"It can mean lotsa things coming from you Fin."

"I mostly deliver stuff. There is a company which needed someone wid' a van to move stuff around. Mostly legal. And it pays good-" He stopped.  
Yeah, she's making conversation.

The waitress came back and gave them their order without ceremony.

"Enjoy your meal."

"Thanks Patty."

The waitress straddled back to the counter.

"You wanted to talk to me about something Vi ?"

She took an inspiration, looking for her words. She didn't feel ready to throw what she wanted to say at his face.

"How's Nick ?"

 _Of course, that's what you want to talk about. Knew it._

He bit in his burger. It was stale at best. He answered between two bites.

"He fine. Working with dis friend of his, the bunny."

She herself had begun eating her meal.

"He's happy, he gets to help people. A good kid, you have." Continued the fennec.

"Yeah I'm sure he is. Not taking time to come and see his mother." She had said it in a perfectly calm tone. It was meant to be taken as a joke. But the mask had cracked.

The fennec lifted a brow, but said nothing.

"You know, I have his adress, you could go see him."

The vixen hesitated, she wanted to go. She wanted to see her son. But if he had wanted to see her, she thought, he would already have come. He was a cop now, she was proud of him now. He had no reason to hide anymore.

"He'll come see me in his own time."

"You're both as stupid. I see where he takes it from." They both silently laughed at that.

...

They had both finished eating and the waitress had come and taken their plates, leaving only crumbs and half-empty soda glasses on the tables. They had asked for dessert. She had chosen an apple pie slice, and he a blueberry milkshake.

The fennec took the bag from under the table and put it on it, sliding it to Vivenne.

"Nick told me to give you that, it's what he could save this month."  
Vivienne was staring at him, a mix of sadness and anger on her face. She was angry at him for not getting anything and at herself for not being able to clearly say what she wanted.

 _Okay, what did I say this time ?_

As the situation wasn't awkward enough, the waitress chose that time to put each of their dessert before them, shoving the bag on the side. Seeing how they were looking at eachother, she quickly retreated to take care of other patrons.

"I didn't call you here so that you could give me my son's money." Her voice was shards of glass.

"Yeah but still, he wants you to have it." He was trying to use his most soothing voice, but he himself was starting to get pissed. She had called him here, for god knew why, and had been distant all evening. He knew she was hurting. Hurting for not seeing her son, for being alone. But whatever he did say, did try, she always shoved him back.

"I don't want it." her voice was now chilling cold. She was looking him in the eyes and he felt her resentment wash over him. He faced her nonetheless.

"The fuck do you want then, Vi ? " He had almost shouted, standing on his seat, paws on the table. "Why are you angry at me ?"

She punched the table violently, making every head in the diner turn, tears slowly filling her emerald eyes. He couldn't stand to see her cry. He had seen her do so too much, and each time it had been harder. He had to use every once of his willposer to not flinch.

"Why didn't you come, those last few months ?" her voice was still controlled, but it was at the breaking point.

"Ya... Ya said to me I had no reason to..." He didn't understand anymore. He was lost. Utterly lost.

"But I-I... I missed y- I missed my son !" She shrieked. She had backed down at the last second.

She was too proud. She was a coward. As always.

"Then go and see him !" He shouted in return, making a large motion to point at the door with his paw. His arme caught the milkshake and send it flying, crashing into the counter, breaking it in pieces, sending bits and splatters everywhere. Now the whole diner was staring at them.

As she was sobbing, he took a piece of paper and quickly wrote Nick's adress on it. He left it on the table with a banknote, hopping down from his seat.

"It wos nice to ya, Vi." He felt a tear in his chest. Something he didn't know was there suddenly went missing. He put his paws in his pocket and let his shoulders slump. He didn't even glance back when he left the diner, slowly making his way back to his van.

* * *

He was bouncing. He was so happy. He was always cheery but this time, it took the cake. He had just received a text from Joe. Their first date had been great, they had had so much fun, simply going to a night-club and dancing all night long. Then, they had spoke until morning and aftert that, his date had escorted him home. What had made the pudgy cat doubt was that Joe had refused the 'last drink' he had offered. But in his text, Joe had asked him for a second date. And it made him all happy, and giggly and warm inside. Joe truly was a gentlemammal.

Now he was waiting fo Nick and Judy to arrive to his appartment. They all had a free day, and had decided to spend it together. Since Clawhauser ha the biggest place, he naturally had invited them to come. The invitation had turned into a movie afternoon and each one of them had chosen a movie the wanted the other to discover. The chubby feline had chosen Hot Fuzz, a buddy cop movie parody, which was way more clever than it appeared at first glance. Judy had chosen Fantastic Mister Fox, a movie she had seen some part on pawtube. It was as 'stop-motion animated masterpiece' has the websites would describe it and she was sure Nick would love it. For his part, Nick went with Bun-raku, a strange action movie with a Clawmurai without as sword and a Cow-boy without a gun. He had seen a long time ago found that it was completely unique. Particularly the environnments.

They were both almost at the felines building whe Judy stopped Nick.

"Ho before I forget. I had to put down five days of vacation for the week after the next" She looked embarassed. "Bunnyburrow tradition and all, I can't really avoid it."

"You don't need to explain to me Carrots. I know how it is to have a family... Well I don't, but I can imagine." he smiled.

"I wanted to tell you sooner but with work and all, my mind was too taken."

"Hey don't worry, I'll probably be put on patrol with Wolford or Clawfith. Worse case scenario, metter maid."

"If so, I want to see a selphie with the vest." she giggled.

"Only if you tell me what's happening in your little town."

"…" She looked away, red creeping under her fur.

"It's carrot related, isn't it ?"

"Maybe."

"If you don't want to tell me, I can simply look it up." He took out his phone.

"It's carrot's week. A local holiday about the thing that made bunnyburrow properous." Nick now had his most beautiful shit-eating grin on his face.

"Daw, you rabbits are so..." _Don't you dare say it !_ "stereotypical." She punched him on the shoulder. "Ow, I didn't say cute." She punched him a second time, more gently.

"Now you did. And what you said was worst."

"Dumb bunny."

"Sly fox."

...

Clawhauser had pre-downloaded the three movies on petflix in case the internet connection would fail. It never did, but he'd rather be cautious. Intercom rang, and he ran to answer. His friends had arrived.

Nick had brought carrot-juice and rhum, Judy Blueberrie-juice and donuts.

"Aaaaaw guys, you shouldn't have !"

They chatted a bit while Clawhauser stored the bottles into a mostly empty fridge. He let the donut box on the counter. "So, asked Nick. How was your date ?"

"It was fan-tas-tic. He had a VIP pass to the Hakkapaw. I don't know where he got that but it was... I can't describe it. The DJ was so good, not just a guy with an USB stick. He was really mixing stuff on the fly." The feline had star in his eyes. His bright smile was infectious and soon Nick and Judy were beaming too. "Look at that, I took photos".He showed them pictures on his phone, quickly swiping. It was mostly selphies with undicernable background. At one point, a muscular tiger appeared with the cheetah. "Woah, he's ripped" blurted Judy. Both male looked at her giggling. "I'm not into those kind of males. I'm more of a lighter framed, leanly muscled mammals".

 _A bit like Nick. Huh, what the hell brain ?_

"Let me tell you, he's a great dancer. We left at 2AM, I was really hungry from all that dancing." To someone who didn't know the pudgy feline, he didn't seem like the dancing type. But Nick and Judy had seen at the party that he had moves, and more flexibility than his heavy frame let appear.

"He found us a place that was still open AND that served donuts. We talked all night long. You know how I met him in this pop-shop ? It's only his part time job, he's a dancer. And get this, he has appeared in some of Gazelle's clips."

"Really ?" reacted Judy, "That's amazing !"

"I know, right ? Anyway, in the morning he escorted me to my building, and I asked him if he wanted to go up for a last drink. I think I was so happy I didn't know what I was thinking." Judy felt warmth crept to her face, placing her paws on her mouth, holding an exclamation. He was more daring than she thought he'd be. Nick was now wearing a slight grin .

 _Ben, You player, you._

"You know what he said ? 'I think it would be too unreasonnable'" He had tried to mimic the tiger's deep voice."and then he said 'but that isn't', and he kissed me !"

"Heeeeeeeee" Squeeled Judy. Nick's grin was now connecting his two ears, he had a brow raised.

"On the snout" the feline added. "But it still counts"

...

They installed themselves on the couch. The fluffy sensation felt very comfortable. "So which movie should we put on first ?" asked their feline friend. "Mine is more of an evening one." answered Nick. "Mine is better with a few beer, and I don't really want to open one right now" added the cat.

"Then it's settled" said Judy. We'll begin with mine, then Ben's one and will finished with yours Nick."

"I'm fine with this."

"Me too."

The TV was a giant 4K LED model. It was like being in a cinema, without the sweat smell and crying kits. Clawhauser had served glasses of the different juices they had brought.

They put on the first movie. It was about a family of foxes. The father was an ex-con who wanted to do a final heist before retreating. Of course without telling his wife.

The heist turned south and it led to the destruction of his village. In the end, he made amend and helped everyone settle somewhere else in even better conditions that they were before. Strengthening in the process his family's bonds.

"I wouldn't think you'd show us a movie that glorified criminal activities." Joked Nick.

"I see it more like this. The renard made mistakes and everyone suffered from it, but in the end and through hard work, by standing together they could all make it through. And despite being a con-mammal, the fox was a loving father and a great mammal." If it took Nick by surprise, he didn't show it.

"I get the message, thanks Judy."

 _Did he just call me Judy ?_

While they were talking about the movie, Clawhauser had disappeared and gotten back with a case of beer. He opened them for his friend. He even had carrot-flavoured ones for Judy.

"You're the best Ben."

"I thought I was the best, Carrots. I bet you say it to every sexy male." taunted the fox.

"Keeps you on your toes. Do we put up the second film now ?"

"I say we wait a bit" answered the cheetah. "This one was real nice and I want it to rest a bit into my mind."

They sipped all a bit of their beer. Nick broke the silence.

"The creatures they stole from wear very strange though. Tall, no fur."

"They were kind of nightmarish" added the feline. "I'm glad we didn't watch this one in the evening."

"But their hairless faces really made them look dumb. It was easy to root against them"

They ended up playing the second movie, Hot fuzz, After having order pizzas by phone, a vegan option for Judy.

The movie was about an overefficient, overzealous and overachieving cop transffered to a town where nothing ever happened. He made friend with a pudgy underachieving cop that slowly made him more open, and taught him how to have fun. In the end, they unearthed a big conspiracy by a ridiculous secret society that was controlling the village from the shadows. He film cleverly made fun of all the buddy-cop and action movies cliché by using them and twiting them around. In the end, both cops ended up staying in the village, acting like two hard-boiled agents.

By the time the movie was over, they had down half of the beer-case.

"Okay, Ben. Understood. I'm uptight." joked Judy, trying to have a severe look and failing miserably.

"The unlikely friendship was nice too. But the second protagonist looks more like you than me" said Nick to Clawhauser.

"So now you see Judy," declared the feline "every situation can't be resolved by following regulation."

As an answer, she punched him lightly in the shoulder.

"Was I the only one to notice the gay subtext, though ?" asked the vulpine, a mischievous grin on his face.

"The what ?" reacted the doe.

Before any of them could answer, the intercom buzzed.

Clawhauser and Nick reacted at the same time, raising their paw both cheering "Pizza !"

...

They ate it at the table before watching the last movie. They wanted to rest their eyes a bit. The TV was nice, but staying in front of it for four hours had drained them. They talked cheerily about their week, the feline getting more into the details of his date.

"Crap, we don't have any dessert." said Clawhauser.

"Um, I brought donuts."

"That you did." said Nick, showing her the empty box.

"Oops ?" laughed the fat feline. "Maybe there is something in the fridge." He opened the door and looked inside. Judy crept near him. Nick at gotten back to the TV, readying the last movie.

"What's this ?" she asked, pointing at a squarish half empty cake platter.

"A milk and white chocolate browny, it's Wolford's. He brought it back from his day off three days ago and didn't touch it since. I don't know if it's still good. Looks to me he won't finish it."

She took a bit of it, it had a strange taste. Chocolate and mossy, like the one they made at bunnyburrows, but heavier on the vegetables.

"Tastes good to me."

"Yeah let's make Wolford a favor and clean the plate for him" giggled the cat.

"You coming guys ?" called Nick's voice.

Clawhauser had given each one of them paper towels and plates, so they would avoid put to much crumbs on the couch. All three were slumped on it as the fim was about to begin. "Do you want a slice Nick ?"

"You know, us canids can't really digest cacao.".

"I think's it's mostly milk and whit chocolate, a piece or two won't make you sick." Said Clawhauser, giving judy a slice.

"Perhaps later then."

The movie began. It was the story of two polar opposite heroes, battling against hordes of deadly henchmen to get to a tyrannic mobboss that ruled the city. Each hero had a reason to fight, but the one of them was more mysterious, more lonesome. In the ended, he battled the villain himself, even refusing the help of his friend when he offered it.

Twenty minute into the movie, Judy got up and went to the fridge, a stumble in her step.

"This brownie calls for rhum". She opened the bottle, sipping directly at the neck. Nick only now smelled something strange and sniffed the cake.

 _What the hell ?_

"I'll have a piece of this after all." The pudgy cat served him a slice with a giggle, and then took the bottle drinking in turn. Nick tasted the cake.

 _This not regular cake. It's space cake. Our good wolf will have some explaining to do._

He quickly ate a second piece to catch up to their level of giddiness, hoping his stomach would hold up. He then took a sip of the bottle of rhum.

...

"I don't get it, why are they fighting eachother ?" asked Judy.

"They are trying to determine which one is the strongest"

"This movies is weird."the doe giggled, taking another piece of the cake.

...

"Who are all those people ?" asked Clawhauser.

"The henchmen, they must fight them to get to the boss."

"This movie is strange." the cat chuckled, taking another piece of the cake.

...

"Why did the fox break his friends last arrow ?"asked Judy.

"Because he wants to beat the boss himself."

"But it's stupid ! He should accept his friends help ! He's already badly hurt !"

"Maybe he thinks he must do this for himself. Maybe it's the only way his mind will find peace."

"But it's- so- sad." sobbed the doe. "He thinks he must do everything alone because it's the only way he knows of."

Nick ate the last piece of the cake.

They were all completely baked. The cake wasn't too strong but mixing it with the rum had made it a bit more interesting. Nick had taken the the feline's phone just in time before he had sent a text he could have regretted in the morning and hidden it on the fridge.

Clawhauser was giggling on the floor, crawling behind the empty bottle that was rolling around.

Judy was snuggled into Nick's arms, nuzzling his chest.

"You know, I understand why you wanted me to see this movie" she said. "Sometimes you want to face things alone. It's the way you got stronger until now."

"Yes but your movie had a point too. I should learn to trust and rely on my friends more."

He kissed her between the ears. She giggled "It tickles". She raised her head. Her amethyst gaze locked into his green eyes. The light of the crescent moon was lighting up her grey fur, making it look like silver. She was mesmerising. Both their heart skipped a beat. He gave her a strange fanged smile and she tenderly kissed his snout, then caressed it with her own soft pink nose.

They fell asleep, snuggled one against eachother, their paws interlocked.

* * *

Strangely, Nick woke up first. As a nocturnal mammal, he shouldn't have but it was well past 10AM. His hazy brain slowly recalling the even of the precedent day, he felt something strange tugging at his tail. It was wrapped around Judy and she was holding it with her left paw. His heart raced.

 _What happenned last night ? I'm not hangover, so not much alcohol. Think dumb fox._

Suddenly, the memories washed over him, drenching his mind a sort of warm, weird and slightly uncomfortable feeling.

 _Ooookay, high-me kissed her on the head. That's okay, friends do that._

 _But she kissed me on the snout._

 _Friends don't do that._

He scratched his head, thinking about what he should do of this.

 _Well, she was kite-high. And drunk. And she's an emotional bunny. I supposed it's what they do._

He raised his shoulders, trying to think nothing of it. But there was something stinging at his heart.

Now he had to make her let go of his tail. The body part was deeply personnal to foxes, an they didn't let anyone touch it. Judy wasn't anyone to him, but still. He lightly shook her.

"Morning fluff-butt"  
The doe rubbed her muzzle with her paw, letting go of Nick's tail. Suddenly he could breath more easily.

 _She's so cute when she does this !_

But he would never tell it to her, the few time she had slept at his, he was delighted to see her do so and didn't want her to refrain herself.

"Mmmmmf'ning Nick." She hadn't really understood how Nick had called her, luckly for him, but she didn't care.

Her foggy brain was trying to make sense of where she was.

 _In Nick's arm. Everything is fine, don't panic. Why am I so tired ?_

She only remembered the strange feeling she had felt. She hadn't been herself during the evening and the alcohol clearly hadn't been the only cause.  
Okay what did happen ? He kissed my head. That's okay, friends do that. And then I kissed him on the snout. Not okay. So not okay. Friends don't do that.

She blinked a few time and pulled away from her friend, looking at him with a flustered expression.

"Nick ? Did I- What happenned was-"

"What happenned was you- well us, being high as kites" He was grinning from ear to ear, half-develishly, half-apologeticaly.

"What ? How ?"

"The brownie. It wasn't regular. It was a space brownie. not really strong, but I'm fairly certain there wasn't only weed in it."

"Oh" That explained a lot, their attitude, the kisses... But a buried part of her knew the drug wasn't what made her kiss him. "How can you be sure ?"

"As I was working in the street, I learned a bit of cooking."

"Cooking what, brownies ?" She had a puzzled expression. He hesitated before answering.

"Yeah, that's it, I cooked brownies".

The doe scratched her head, squinting her eyes as memories slowly flowed in her mind "You- you remember everything ?"

"Mostly yeah. Our discussion about why we showed eachother those movie. It was nice of you Carrots." She had been more subtle about it than he thought she could be.

"And after that ?" she looked a bit anxious.

"Hazy" he lied, not wanting to embarass her or to make it awkward between them, in case her kiss had only been a drug induced spur of the moment. "I think I kissed your head. Then I kind of fell asleep."

 _So he doesn't remember. Maybe it's for the best._

She didn't believe a word of what she had just thought.

"Yeah, that's what I remember, too." she said. She thought she saw the shadow of a sad expression crawl upon Nick's face, she blinked and it was gone. The shit-eating grin was back.

"Too bad, I really wanted to ask you if I made a comfortable pillow."

"I'm sure it wasn't. But I had to make due."

All tension was slowly fading as the jokes were spoken. The weight on their heart felt lighter and sharper at the same time.

"Sly bunny"

"Dumb fox"

* * *

 **OMG WAT IZ HAPPENIN' ?**

 **Are those two getting closer ? No way !**

 **:3**

 **This chapter was heavy on references to movies and books (and I'm not talking about the one they watched). It was my way of telling what are my tastes and what you can expect of this fanfic.**

 **Did you get all the references I put in ?**


	5. 05 Gunshots and Sanction

**Heyyy readers. This one is going to be a bit short, sorry about that.**

 **But first, reviews answers :**

 **Foxlover91 :**  
 **You thought this conversation was tense ? Wait until you see some of the things I have in store for later :p**  
 **I really loved to write the movie night. Believe it or not, but I chose those movies because I could easily make puns with the titles and found a message for each afterwards. (I highly recommend them by the way, they're all very good).**

 **SS Killroze :**  
 **Glad you liked the first chapters. I was afraid chapter 2 would make me lose readers since it was kind of a 'filler' (meaning, something important to help pinpoint Clawhauser's personnality, but not really adding anything to the plot).**  
 **About chapter 3, I'm sorry you didn't like the part with Nick talking about his feelings, because, well... You'll see :)**  
 **I'd find it really interesting if you could tell me more on what you did and did not like since I'm using this fiction to train myself as a writer. Have you read part 0 ? It could help get more into Nick's introspection.**

 **Anyway, thanks everyone for the great reviews !**

 **And now, the proper new chapters !**

* * *

He had been sloppy. Very sloppy. And it wasn't the first time he had screwed up this week. First he had scrtached the cruiser while parking it, then he had failed to defuse a situation with an angry civilian he had fined. Judy even have had to intervene. He didn't know where his mind was, but certainly not in his job. The event of the week prior crept in the corner of his brain, and the fact that Judy was not going to be with him during the next week shadowed his thought.  
Now he had not only put himself in trouble but he had dragged down Judy into it with him. And he would never forgive himself if anything ever happenned to her because of him.

He had failed to notice the kid was drugged out of his mind, he had failed to notice the gun, he had failed to follow every last regulation simply because the kid was a fox, and he had seen too much of himself in him.

Now bullets were flying, civilians were running, and he and his partner were taking cover behind the cruiser which slowly looked more and more like swiss-cheese.

"Patrol 1123, Nick speaking. We have a 10-71, with 10-50. Requesting assistance ASAP, at the 148 on the 37th street, Downtown"  
"10-4 1123, I'm sending back up, they'll be there in 10. hang in there" came the voice of Clawhauser.

"Carrots, back-up are on their way, but we can't wait."

"Agreed, if he keeps firing at us randomly, he's bound to hit a civilian. How do we play this ?"

"I'll create a distraction, you tranq him from the side."

Nick took out his real gun, slowly creeping to the other side of the cruiser.

"Nick, do we have permission to use lethal force ?"

"I'm not aiming at him"

How did this kid could have gotten an automatic weapons he could not know. And how much bullet could contain his magazine ?

The fox risked an eye, looking at the kid. He was looking blankly at the cruiser, firing bullet after bullet into it, foam coming out of his mouth. He seemed oblivious to what was happening around him.

"Change of plan Carrots." He switched to his tranq gun. The clip contained four darts. He aimed at the kid who was mechnically reloading his gun and shot him once. He didn't even flinch but looked at Nick, this time aiming at him. The fox officer saw four darts coming from the right, hitting the youngling right in the center of the chest. Immediately, he turned to face his new attacker and began emptying the weapon in their direction. Judy had barely the time to jump back into cover.

Nick heard a squeele, and lost it, lunging at the shooter with a vicious growl, exposing himself and closing the distance in the blink of an eye.

As she saw Nick's dart hit the young vulpine and him not even batting an eye, she understood that the drugs were keeping him to feel the effect of the tranquilizer. She saw him aim at Nick and immediately emptyed her clip. She thought he was going to fall this time but what he had taken was way too strong. As soon as she saw him turn again, she got back into cover, loudly squeeling when bullets hit the place she was occupying a second ago.

She heard Nick's growl and the shooting stopped. She shot her head out of cover and saw nick punch the kid right in the snout, sending the PM flying. She hoped it wouldn't shoot as it hit the foor and it luckily didn't.

Nick was struggling with the kid. He was bigger but the youngling's strength seemed enhanced by the drug. No matter, he had had six months of physical preparation and three months on the street. As his opponent was trying to strangle him, he twisted his arm, forcing him to fall flat on his chest, emptying his lungs. Part of him wanted to crack the kit's head into the pavement but he refrained himself. Immediately, he saw Judy at his side, holding the other arm and helping him cuff the shooter. He tried to bite them, but their training had taught them to keep out of reach. Nick breathed a long breath, seing that his partner was alright.

"Glad you're okay" He immediately froze as he saw what she was holding."Carrots. No Muzzle."

"He's out of it. It's necessary."

"No. Muzzle." Blank voice. Blank mask.

"But the regulation-"

"Fuck the regulation, I'll take the fall if I must. No muzzle." he had angrily shouted immediately regretting as a hurt look came to the doe's face.

Before Nick could apologize, the tranquilizer began to work and the kid stopped moving. Nick put him on his side, in a secured position while Judy called for an ambulance and signaled to the precinct that the event was over. The young fox had started to puke white bile and Nick was freeing his mouth with a handkerchief. The kid couldn't be more than sixteen. There was something in Nick's eyes that she not often had seen. Pity.

"You all right Nick ?"

"Ask this to the kit. I hope he won't OD on the tranq." He glanced at Judy, who had put her paws on our mouth. "Oh, sorry Carrots, I didn't mean this like that. I'm not saying it's your fault. I mean-" He had left his voice trailed of. The bile had gone through Nick's handkerchief but he didn't seem to care, keeping sweeping the kid's snout with his tainted hand. She approached him and put a paw on his shoulder.

"You're not yourself."

 _I am more myself right now than I usually am._

"There is something on your mind, isn't it ?" She asked. Actually there was a lot on his mind, but he decided to give her something else to chew on. He wasn't really ready to talk about what truly ate at him.

"The kid. I saw myself in him. Not the gun thing- Just, I've made a lot of mistake."

"I know Nick."

"No you don't" he chuckled. "You so don't."

"That doesn't matter to me, you're a great mammal. You've always been."

 _You're wrong Judy._

But he said nothing, letting her words soothe him.

The siren of the ambulance and the other police cruiser filled the air. They let the medical mammals take away the unconscious kid, one of them raising a brow when they saw he didn't wear a muzzle.

...

"Clawhauser" came the angry voice of the chief from the front desk radio, "as soon as officers Hopps and Wilde are here, I want you to send them into my office." just as soon as the radio stopped talking, the aforementionned officers entered the precinct. Nick was scrapping his hand with a piece of paper towel.

"Guys, the chief asked me to send you to his office ASAP. You better go now."

"Let's go officer Carrots" joked the fox "our torment are far from being over."

She frowned at him as to say it wasn't a great time for jokes.

"Guys, no one died, you're going to be fine." tried to cheer the tubby feline.

...

"You both screwed up big time today officers. I've looked at the camera feeds. What were you doing ? What were you thinking ?" He tapped a key on his keyboard and showed them the screen. The feed came from a traffic camera. They had been called by a citizen notyfying them of a weird-acting fox teenager. Nick was seen approaching the kid, raising a paw toward Judy so she would stay back. He had leaned over a clearly twitching young mammal.

Even a this distance, you could easily see the bulge under his sweater. Nick seemed to say something to him but the kid pushed him back angrily, taking the gun out of its hding place. Nick slowely backed down, his paws raised. The video then showed Judy tackling Nick out of the way, as the kid started shooting. And then both of them taking cover behind the cruiser as civilians were running from the drugged mammal.

"I couldn't list every mistake you made during this arrestation. Not checking him from weapon, approaching him without caution, and then not asking for the use of lethal force... I'm glad the kid's alive, but you took too much risk. It's a miracle no-one has been hurt or killed." He made a pause. "And why the hell wasn't he muzzled when the medic took him in ?"

He pinched his eyes with his hoof.

"Nick, what the hell are you doing this week ? The grazed cruiser, I can understand, but the altercation wednesday, and now this ?"

"I don't know sir. I'm just not in it this week. I apologize."

The cape buffalo turned his stern gaze to the doe.

"And you Judy, as the senior officer, I expected more of you. You should be watching over your partner, It's been only three months since he has been transferred here."

"I'm sorry sir. It won't happen again." she said in a meek voice.

"I hope it won't. You're responsible for his actions."

At that, the fox reacted.

"What do you mean responsible for my actions ? Don't take it out on officer Hopps, sir. I'm the only one at fault here."

The chief turned back to the fox, his frown dangerously lower, not keen on his officers contradicting him.

"No, you're not. You screwed up both. Equaly. You're a Corporal, she's a lieutenant. And as the senior officer, she has a part of responsibility on everything you do when you work together."

"It's not fair !" Nick had raised his voice. He was now standing on his chair. The cape buffalo had stood too, towering over the two officers.

"Stand down officer. If you don't want your partner to take the blame for your mistakes, maybe you should learn to make less of them, like a proper agent of the ZPD !" The chief had spoke in a loud tone, slowly leaning toward Nick, to get his point across.

"Then maybe you should assign a proper agent to her !" He had shouted at the chief's face. All the tension he had held back for weeks, for months, suddenly bursting and rippling toward every mammal in the room.

 _This is how he dies_ , _This is how Nick dies._

But instead, the chief's brows slightly rose. Still leaning toward the fox, he asked.

"What the hell are you saying, Wilde ?"

The fox looked around, a startled expression on his face, realizing what he had said and done.

"It's nothing sir." he sighed, slumping back on his seat.

"No Nick, it isn't nothing." Said judy, looking up to him with sad eyes, her hand on the side of his leg.

"What are you going on about, you two ?" the chief's voice was calm and stern, but he had a concerned attitude.

The fox pinched his eyes taking a deep breath. He was used to have things eating at him, but usually he cold keep them from affecting his attitude.

"It's about the question sir. The last one during the interview. Do you remember ?"

He did, he had meant to talk about it with Nick during the party three months ago but he had been held back by Clawhauser and completely forgotten about it.

"Yes I do remember."

"Well, it stayed stuck here" Said the fox, pointing toward his head. "And maybe it's stupid, but I cant help myself but think that maybe my place isn't really here."

It was the chief's turn to sigh.

"I knew it wasn't a good idea." he mumbled to himself, making both Nick and Judy raise their eyebrows. "Not you being here." He quickly clarified "I meant the question. It was MacHorn's idea. He wanted to test you, to see if you could show something else than the mask, and what would be your principles as an officer." he scratched his head. "I had already decided that I wanted you into my precinct. Your grades were good enough, and you knew enough of the criminal world to be an asset. But your answer was great. Really great. If by then I hadn't been sure of your potential, it would have convinced me."

Nick wanted to thank the chief for his words, but if he tried to talk know, he was sure his voice would crack. He simply nodded.

A silence installed itself in the room. the buffalo scratched his head, while he was reflecting on what to do with the situation. QFinally he came to a decision.

"You're okay, fox. Nor you nor your partner are in trouble. Your mistakes will cost money to the city. Cruisers aren't cheap. But no one was hurt and that's what's important."

He put back his glasses on, looking at a file.

"You're to take a week of vacation as of tomorrow. Since your partner was going to be absent for the week anyway, it's best you're not here to bother the other officers."

Both Nick and Judy were now smiling.

"It means that I want your report on the incident before 10PM. You're dismissed."

Their smiles faltered a bit but stayed on their faces. They left the room.

...

"Carrots wait." He stopped her in the middle of the hallway, as they had just left the chief's office.

"What is it Nick ?"

"I wanted to apologize about how I acted. With the muzzle thing and everything else."

"It's alright Nick. I understand why you acted like this. I'm not upset with you." She gave him a reassuring smile, lifting a bit of the weight from nick's troubled mind. She started walking again in the direction of their desk. "So, since you're free, do you want to come with me at bunnyburrows. You know, for the festival. And you could meet my parents."

"Meeting your parents ? Aren't you going a bit fast ? We're not even dating yet." He regretted the half-joke as soon as it left his mouth. He had to put on the his most mischievous mask to sell it as a joke.

"What ?" Her mouth stayed agape, eyes staring blankly at him. She blinked and forced herself to chuckle. "Real funny slick. Anyway, the invitation stays open."

"I'm gonna have to pass. I need time alone to think about all this, about what the chief said. And I doubt a full burrow of hyperactive bunnies is the best place to reflect upon my life."

They both had finished their report and as they were leaving the precinct, Nick had proposed that Judy and him took a drink at a coffee-shop. The doe had to decline, her train was leaving soon in the morning and she still had her briefcase to fill. They promised to call eachother during the coming week an then went their separate way.

Judy was already gloomy at the idea of not seeing Nick for a week, but she had passed six months without him. A one week vacation with her family couldn't be that bad.

Nick was alread lost in his thought, thinking of how he would go see his mother. If he would dare. If he would ask Finnick to come with him. He was also sad that he was not going to see his best friend for a week but the perspective of confronting one of his biggest mistake was taking most of his brain's capacity. He had had it postponing it for too long, using his failure at being an honest mammal as an excuse. His shame and sadness were like a sharp throbbing pain in his heart.

* * *

 **Do you believe one can spend twenty years living in the streets without getting involved in really shady business and going through a couple of traumatic experiences ?**

 **Honest question.**


	6. 06 Parental Discussion

**Hello guys.**

 **Disclaimer : Weird chapter. I suggest you read the afterwords.**

 **I'm talking about some side characters that I like. I hope you will like them too.**

* * *

They had invited Fangmeyer to come with them but he had declined. "I promised the lady I would be hers tonight, and you know how that is. I don't want to disappoint her." he had said. "Don't go choking on a fishbone.". It was around 6PM as they had left the precinct. They had taken the ZUG to Tundratown.

Blackfur was showing Wolford around. She had grown up and had worked in the district. She knew every corner of the district. They were both still in uniform, having forgotten to take a change of clothe as they usually didn't need it.

"Why did you leave here for Rainforest. You seem to like it here !"

"I grew tired of the cold, I guess" she answered in her usual calm tone. He didn't catch the thin layer of regret underneath it.

They went through a massive mall. There were bright lights blinking, calm music playing from speakers, cheery people were passing around them. 'It's always Clawsmas in Tundratown' was a common saying and this evening, it seemed true. It gave a boost to Wolford's already happy mood. He was about to comment about it to Blackfur, but when he glanced at her, she had a strange look on her face. She looked focused, looking around for something, listening and humming the air.

"You okay partner ?"

She shushed him from her paw, hesitated and then rushed to their right, into a perpendicular hallway. The wolf searched with his eyes, looking for what had the panda all flustered.

He saw a a lonely cervid kid, probably no more than four. He had a a worried and sad look on his face, tears pouring from his eyes. People went past him without really noticing. He was looking around him, mumbling and stuttering, obviously lost.

With her large stature and the uniform that gave her an air of authority, Wolford was afraid her colleague would scare the poor kid, but she already had approached him, having put down a knee to appear less big than she was.

She had leaned really close to the youngling. He was in her back a bit recessed so that two people wouldn't overwhelm, the child. He couldn't see her face, nor hear what she was whispering to him, but the kid immediately seemed to calm down. They seemed to talk a bit and then she gave him her huge paws. He took it without hesitation.

"The kid's lost his parents, I'm going to the information desk and make an announcement for a lost Gabriel Deantla. You're going to try to help him retrace his steps, we stay in contact by radio."

"Wouldn't it be simpler to both go to the information desk together ?"

"No it wouldn't." she turned to the young cervid, her tone had gone from serious business to mama bear in an instant. "Can you take care of officer moon-moon here for me ? He's a bit shy, so be nice to him."

"Okay ma'am" The kid gave his hand to the Wolf, who took it without thinking.

"But, Bla-" tried to protest the canid.

"You're going with him. That's an order officer." she stormed away.

 _But I don't know how to take care of kids._

He scratched his head and looked at the kid. He was staring at him expectantly.

"So big boy, do you remember how you got here ?"

He pointed to a shop "I was looking at dis !"

 _Of course, distracted kid looking at a toy store front._

"So let's go see it and work from there."

...

"The little Gabriel Deantla is waiting for his parents a the information desk. I repeated, The little Gabriel Deantla is waiting for his parents a the information desk."

The panda's voice came from the wolf's radio. "Wait until they call, saying the parents are waiting for their kid."

"Ooookay ?"

"Thanks."

 _What are you playing at Blackfur ?_

They had entered the toy store. The kid had completely forgotten where he had come from and the wolf found it simpler too take him to a place he wouldn't want to leave. He was still holding his paw though, the kid seemed easily distracted. He felt a tuggin on his tail that made his hairs and ears stand up. The kid was playing with it with his free hand.

"You shouldn't play with wolves tails son."

"Why ?" He looked genuinly surprised.

"It's like, um... Antlers. You know how you're parents said to you shouldn't touch anyone's antlers without asking first ?" The wolf had taken a course on mammal sociology, couldn't hurt to know what and what not to do with other species. He wished more people did like him, but he didn't blame the kid. Kids were curious, and curious was good in his book.

"Oh yeah, mom said that. I don't understand that but she said I shouldn't, that cervids didn't like that. Do you fight with your tail too ?"

"Huh ? Oh no. It's more of a personnal thing. Like tickles but more uncomfortable."

"Oh. Sorry."

"That's okay kid, I'm not upset."

"If you don't have antlers, what do you use to fight ?"

"I'm a cop, so tranq-gun to make people sleep."

"I thought wolves used fangs and claws." he seemed disappointed.

"We have them but we don't use them."

"Why ? Is it bad ?"

"Yes, very."

"Can I see them ?"

 _I really shouldn't do that._

But he couldn't resist the excited and expectative look on the kids face. He looked around, making sure no one was watching.

"Okay, but you're not telling to anyone. Not your friends, not your parents. I could be in big trouble, so you need to promise."

"I promise !"

 _Okay, here goes._

He took out his claws and bared his fangs, taking the least threatening expression he could muster.

"Woah !" The kid had taken an amazed expression, his hands were shaking ligtly. Wolford couldn't know if it was from excitation or fear, so he hid his natural weapons.

"You okay kiddo ?"

"Your fangs look so cool ! I wish I had fangs !"

"You'll have big antlers, it wouldn't be fair if you also had fangs."

...

"Gabriel Deantla is awaited by his parents at the information desk, I repeat Gabriel Deantla is awaited by his parents at the information desk"

 _Seriously, what are you doing Blackfur ?_

They made their way to the information desk. As they approached, Wolford saw a couple of deer that were watching down on their hooves and a stern officer Blackfur with crossed arms. Behind them, the desk clerk, a badger, looked like he was holding back from grinning.

"Mom, Dad !" The kid let go of the wolf's paw, running to his parents.

"Son !" they both cried at the same time, raising him from the floor and hugging him.

The panda nodded at them "Take care now." She went back to the wolf officer.

"Care to explain to me what you were doing ?" asked the canid who had a pretty good idea what it was all about.

"I didn't want the kid to be here while I was chewing them out. Bad for authority."

It was Blackfur for you. She could be the most rule-driven and professionnal cop in the precinct, stare down any mammal, be great with kids and lecture parents on how to take care of their child.

"How did they lose track of him ?"

"Looked away while they were shopping for clothes. They should have paid more attention."

"It's a common mistake, doesn't make them bad parents." He raised his shoulders.

"You never lose sight of your kid." It was a statement. The tone she used dissuaded the wolf to challenge it.

...

They arrived at the restaurant and hour later than they had planned, but their table was still free and waiting for them. The ursine had called to warn that they would be late. The place was small, with discreet and elegant decoration. The wall were of black varnished wood, with paper panneling separating the tables. It looked fancy but as he glanced at the menu, the wolf found that the food wasn't overpriced. In return, the menu didn't have a lot of choice. In his experience, that usually meant good food.

"So I take it you'll take gyosas ?" asked the wolf.

"I don't know yet, still thinking."

The waiter, also a panda, came to their table "Wight, long time no see !" he put down his glasses and shook the other ursine's hand, genuinly happy to see her.

"Likewise Jake, is Oscar doing okay ?"

"Yeah, he is. He left the city though, installed himself in Greengarden, opened his own place at last. Who's your friend by the way ?"

"Augustyn Wolford" presented himself the Wolf. "Nice to meet you." He shook the waiter's paw.

"Jake Slumbstill, nice to meet you too." He put his glasses back on "But you didn't come here to make the conversation with the waiter, what will you take ?"

"It depends on the cook's mood."

"It's a calm evening, so he's not in a rush. Kind of bored."

"I'll have a sashimi assortment. The extra-large one. Side dish of gyoza, twenty-four pieces. Both at the same time."

Not knowing why she had asked about the mood, Wolford played it safe and asked for the same thing with halved quantities. He saw the waiter scribble VIP on the corner of his notepad. He then bowed and went away.

"Good choice" said the female panda.

"Thanks." answered the canid "You know the waiter, are you two related ?"

"All pandas aren't related." she had crossed her arms with a stern expression.

"Sorry, I didn't mean-" He began with an apologetic look.

"I know, I'm just making fun" She reassured him "Plus, we are kind of related, he's my step-brother"

The last sentence left a wide blank in the conversation. The wolf wanted to ask more but he kept his questions for himself though, not wanting to put his hinder paw in his mouth. A thing he was usually expert at.

The waiter came back with a bottle of Alpawrino, a strange sight in this kind of establishment, opened it, made Wolford taste it and when he approved with a confused look on his face, filled both their glasses.

"What was that about the chef's mood ?" asked the wolf, hoping to deviate from the precedent topic.  
She chuckled.

"When he is calm, let's say on a regular evening, he's a great cook. But his mood string can be a bit... Erratic. In a rushing evening, his sashimi can get unequally cut. Too bored and he forgets the dumplings in the cooker. When it's calm like this, you ask for both, since he has to juggle between two types of dishes, he gets into 'working mode' and nails it all perfectly." She made a pause, taking a sip from her glass. "Even when he 'screws up' and I use those words broadly, he's still the best pawsian chef in town."

"You seem to know a lot about this place, did you eat it here a lot ?"

"I worked here. When I was young and needed a bit of money. The chef was an apprentice at the time, now he owns the place."

The waiter came back with their order. The wolf smelled the plates, the scent was mouth-watering.

"Itadakimasu", the panda had clapped her hand.

The wolf raised an eyebrow, a piece of sashimi already between his chopsticks.

"It's an eastern black bear thing" She explained "I picked the habit with a friend of mine. She was way into traditional stuff."

"I hope I'm the first to point out that you're weird, Blackfur." he declared, his brow still raised.

"Off duty it's Wight."

"I hope I'm the first to point out that you're weird, Wight." He smiled.

The sashimi was divine. Clearly better than the Eastern Pawgod's. The salmon really tasted like salmon and the red tuna brought water to his eyes. The wolf didn't use the soy sauce, preferring the untainted taste of the fish.

He tasted a gyoza, the mix of crispness and mushyness, and the vegetables' flavour was perfectly intact.

"You win, Wight. It's the best pawsian restaurant in the city." He admitted. She nodded at him in agreement. He raised a finger. "But I maintain that the Eastern Pawgod's trout is still the freshest."

She chuckled at that, gulping another sashimi, nearly choking herself.

...

"Hey, I wanted to say, you were great with that kid. I don't know how you could calm an reassure him so quick but that was impressive."

"That was nothing." she said, shrugging.

"But that was something !" He interjected "Most prey are instinctively afraid of predators, wether they admit or not. And in the kid's state of distress, he could have reacted way worst. Well I suppose since you're married, you probably have kids of your own. You must have experience as a moth-"  
Wight had a frozen expression. "Wolford." she interrupted him.  
The panda officer had put down her chopsticks, and was staring at her mostly empty plates, jaws clenched, breathing slowly.

"Wight ? Are you alright ?" he had leaned toward her, concerned by her sudden change of attitude. She glanced at him, a mix of anger and sadness in her eyes. It made him back down instantly.

"Oh shit. I'm so sorry." he played with his food on his plate, not knowing what he had said to put her in that mood. He was afraid that the next thing he might say would only make it worse. "I assumed you were married with the stepbrother thing and that maybe you had a kid and-" he hesitated.

She was just staring at her plate, not reacting to anything he tried to say. He had tripped on something big, whatever he was going to tell wouldn't be what she needed now. He had screwed up and wanted to make it right, though, but he didn't know where to begin.

"I'm, sorry. I put my paws in my mouth all the time. Do you want me to leave you alone ?"

"No, just give me a moment." she said. The wolf hesitated, already half-standing. The panda was now wearing a unreadable expression. He sat back, his head bowed, glancing at her, trying to read her face. He was hoping she would be more openly upset, feeling that the silence was worse than being yelled at.

She looked up from her plate at the wolf. She was upset. At him, but mainly at herself. She had let show her emotions a bit too much, not that she was usually a well-guarded mammal.

But with the face he was making, she simply couldn't be mad at him. She took a breath and he seemed to lower his head even more, like he was expecting her to shout at him.

"I'm not upset. It's a delicate topic, and I'd rather not talk about it right now." His head was still low but his worried expression had receided a bit. She contained a chuckle "You can drop the omega attitude now. As you said, you put your foot in your mouth, but that's no reason to be angry."

"Huh ? How do you know ?" His worried expression had been completely replaced by surprise.

His answer took her aback. She didn't understand what he meant.

"Know what?"

"The omega thing, how do you know ?" He was staring at her in disbelief.

"I read about it, mammals behaviour. Your attitude matched." She still didn't understand his reaction. It was usual for officers to learn about other mammals traits. It was important since it helped mediate in tense situations.

"Oh." he said, coming back to a more composed attitude. "It was just that."

There was something else, Blackfur could sense it, but if it was private she didn't want to pry. She simply lifted an interested eyebrow, hoping he would say more.

"It's just, the way you said it, it seemed like you knew."

"Knew what ?" She couldnt keep herself from asking.

"The pack thing. Fangmeyer knows about it, MacHorn too but he's a prey, so he doesn't really understand." He saw her interested expression and decided that he wanted to share that with her, partly to make up for his mistake from earlier, partly to get away from the previous topic and save the evening from being a total fiasco.

"I'm in sort of an association, the Wood Howlers. It's a sort of... pack. We try to assemble and go... hiking and live off the land in the woods, north to the city, for few days at a time. There is a lot of howling involved. We try to be more close to our nature, express our instincts freely."

"Like nudists ?" she half-joked.

The wolf smiled at that, he had successfuly diverted the conversation from the previous topic. Truth was, she had understood what he was doing, and was grateful for it. And the matter interested her anyway.

"No. I mean, for some of us yes, some get in their underwear, some go completely naked. And then there is the whole pack thing. We name an alpha for the duration of the event, the title rotates between members, some like other positions better, like beta or gamma. I'm most comfortable being omega."

"Doesn't it create tentions between members ? If multiple alpha personnalities are in the group ?"

"It does sometimes. The strongest mostly tend to be betas when they can't be alphas. Some prefer not to come, to not ruin the experience for others. We sometime make multiple groups to accomodate everyone. We're open to non-traditional stuff too, we've had female alphas from time to time. We even accept guests, even if most just come only one time out of curiosity."

"Pass, I'll feel like an intruder."

He chuckled, "Yeah, that's how most non-wolf guests feel. Beside maybe you're right not to come, those little gatherings can get... frisky. With all the instincts kicking, and half naked mammals, it's not uncommon that two members fool around." He had a slight naughty grin. "Like I said, lots of howling involved."  
She snorted, putting a paw on her snout to hide her laughter. The wolf was happy, he had been able to make her forget about what as eating at her earlier.

"That explain a lot though." She began.

"Explain what ?"

"Your attitude. You joke all the time, you try to cheer people up, learn about and try to befriend every-one. But you don't really want everyone to like you, you just want them to be happy."

The wolf scratched his neck in embarassement. The panda was spot on in her observation. She continued talking "I mean, I've seen you take the blame for some of your coworker mistakes, and deviate anger toward you. It's textbook omega comportment"

Silence fell as the wolf was containing a blush while the panda emptyed her glass.

"It's that obvious ?"

"No it isn't. I'm observant, that's kind of my thing. For instance, I can say you hate silence since you nap with your earphones plugged in and tap your leg when no-on talks." She kept for herself the smell of cannabis he sometimes had when he came back from his days off, she could now guess it came from his gatherings. But from her standpoint, as long as he did his job correctly, there was no reason to call him out on it.

The wold chuckled, embarrassed. "You're really perceptive. Between that and you're diplomatic skills, I see why you got a position at Precinct One. You do that with every one of our colleagues ?"

"I do that with every one I spend enough time. It tends to creep people out though." she smiled unapologetically.

"I hope I'm the first to point out that you're weird, Wight." Smiled the wolf, equal to himself. He wasn't mocking or making fun. It was his way to express he accepted her weirdness.

"Top twenty" She answered, her smile giving a hint of relief.

"I'll take it."

* * *

 **Phew. This one was hard. There were lots of things I wanted to reveal about those characters that are going to be important later on.**  
 **If I told you how many times I had to rewrite this, I don't know if you'd believe me, and even now I'm not completely happy about how it came out.**  
 **For those who think things were a bit forced... Let's say they are and aren't. I had to go back and edit loads of stuff, getting the cringe out.**

 **(Oh, and the wine was an Albarino, great with sashimi. Try it.)**


	7. 07 Bunnies and Burrows

**Now that most of my reader have dropped this fanfic because of the last chapter, I can finally begin to unload the 'good stuff'.**

 **;)**

 **Have a nice read.**

* * *

The train ride lasted longer than she remembered, stretching itself through the country, through multiple towns. People got in and people got out, their unknown faces only passing through Judy's mind.  
She was a cop for nine months know, and proud to be one. It had been a challenge, to get accepted by her colleagues and to make her family accept that she wasn't going to change her mind. Now, 9 months after the night howler case, she was going home to visit. She was anxious, apprehensive. Even if she tried to talk with her parents at least every two weeks, seeing them in person would be different, and every comment on her well-being and their fears would be more real than in a simple face-call.

"Bunny Burrow, the train has arrived at Bunny Burrow, please don't forget any luggage on board and mind the gap between the train and the platform." It was around 8AM.

She stepped out, holding her luggage with her right arm, looking around to see if her family was waiting for her.

"Judyyyy !" Mutliples shouts came to her. A wave of big ears and little noses washed over her, and soon she felt more Clawsmas tree than bunny. A part of her siblings had come to meet her, they were hugging her and only part of her face was still visible.

"Kids, let go of her, we'd like to see her too." came a motherly voice. Judy's mother was a bit larger and smaller that her daughter.

"Yeah, kids, she's not you're personnal hoping ground." her father had what one could call a country voice. Thick farmer accent, jovial tone.  
The kids finally let go of her, she went to hug her parents.

"Mom ! Dad ! I missed you !"

"We missed you too, girl."

She was sitting in the truck, next to her mother. Her father was drving while her siblings had piled up in the runk. She had cringed the idea. Since she was a cop she had seen a lot of accident and the more gruesome often involved kids with no seatbelts. There was nothing she could do, beside rationalizing that her father was a prudent driver and that there were few people on the road at this hour.

They arrived at her home. It was a massive repurposed shed, were many dependencies had been added each generations. She couldn't believed she had missed the place. As big as was this place, with all her siblings, it always feeled cramped. The noise and activity never ceased and it wasn't the best place if one wanted to take a nap. Still, it was more her home than the shoebox she currently lived in.

They entered the large house, accompagnied by the chattering of Judy's siblings.

"So what's the program for Carrot's week. Do you have a booth ? Are you selling stuff ?"

"Of course we are Judy. We're selling carrots, raddish, shallots..." began Stewart

"So much stuff we can't all list them."

Judy greeted the siblings that hadn't com the trainstation to meet them. Not all of them though, since it would have taken the whole day. She then took her luggage to her old room. Aside from the dusting, it had not been touched since she had gone back to zootopia. Contrary to most of her siblings, her room wasn't shared. She had insisted to have one so she could study more.  
She signed in nostalgia, looking around her, detailing her room. She felt like an archeologist, going around a long forgotten place.

Decoration had been kept to a minimum aside for two posters. One about the ZPD, showing a bunch of officers with a big "Join us TODAY" written at the top. The other one was from Gazelle. There was also a now mostly empty cabinet as they passed down their clothes from a sibling to another.  
She opened the luggage and hesitated to unload it in the cabinet. It was ultimately pointless, she decided. She then left the room to join her family in the common room.

The carrot festival had evolved as the year passed. In the beginning it had been created by the first farmers of Bunny Burrow. They were all rabbits that had assembled their belongings and money to create a carrot farm. As th years passed, the quality of thier products was well known. The year came when they finally had established themselves as the main carrot providers for the region. The celebration ensuing had evolved in a five days festival. Since then they had opened the event to the city's outsiders, using it to promote their products and culture. The production had evolved over the years, they weren't only selling carrots but a whole lot of differrent type of vegetables.

As an aspiring ZPD officer, Judy had never really paid attention to the celebrations. She thought of it being more of a chore she was forced to participate to than something she could be proud of. But now, as she had matured enough, it mad her happy to see everyone so busy with the preparations. Her parents and siblings were proud of what they made and she could now see how that was important.

Her parents were not in the commong room, one of her cousins informed her that they were working near the barn.

As she went outside she saw he mother filling a large basket with carrots, neatly aligning them. Judy came to help her.

"You don't have to do that Judy, you're on vacation. And I know how you always hated doing this."

"I want to help, mom. I can't really look while you're all work, can I ?"

"You wouldn't really be a Hopps otherwise" The Jovial voice of her father came from behing the two does.  
He was carrying a pile of square basket that was towering over his head. He them down and hopped to take the one a the top. Judy was aware that rabbits had legs made for high jumps, but seeing her chubby father jump this high always impressed her. He began to fill his own basket with the orange roots.

"So what's the day's program ?" asked Judy

"We fill the baskets with as much product as we can, we load the truck, when the truck is full I go an unload it at our booth while you fill other baskets. Rince and repeat until 5PM. And then I'm going fishing with Gideon."

"You're going fishing ?" the doe had a puzzled look on her face.

"Yeah, Gideon introduced me to the practice. It's relaxing. I release what I catch though."

"And you mom ?"

"Me and the girls are having an aperitif at the house. You can join us if you want."

Judy perfectly knew what an aperitif meant. Her aunts, cousins and all other rabbits would be present and she'd have to face waves of questions and concerns about her personnal life. Did she have mate ? why didn't she have a mate ? Was she dating someone at the moment ? Would it be serious ? Had she considered having kids ? Did she know her internal clock was ticking ?

At the moment, she wasn't seeing anyone, and there wasn't anyone she was interested in anyone. At this thought, images came in the foreground of her mind. A lean and atheltic silhouette, a red and cream fluffy tail, pools of emerald were she would let herself drown into. Feeling red come to her face, she chased the pictures.

 _Don't be foolish Judy. There is no way- just don't think about it._

She decided to take the cowardly way out.

"I'm think I want to try fishing. I've never done it and it would be nice to see Gideon again.

If both of her parents had perfectly understood the real reason behind her choice, they didn't show it.

"So this evening it's me and Jude the dude. You'll see, it's less barbaric than it appears."

...

Judy felt her every muscle screaming in agony. As a cop, she was always training to keep in shape, but the farmers work sollicited parts she didn't usually use. She had lied down in the weed, looking at the cloud while her father prepared the fishing gear. The perspective of getting back up wasn't pleasant. The good news was that she would spend the morning after sleeping. There were perks at being on vacation.

"Get up Jude, we're going." Her father had come and offered his hand to help her up. She took it and soon they were in the truck, making their way to the fishing spot. As they arrived, she saw Gideon having already put up his equipment. A simple handmade fishing road, two seats and a portative radio.

"Hey Stu ! Judy ? Oh sorry, I didn't know you were coming, I woulda put up 'nother seat otherwise."

"Don't worry Gid'" said Stu, "I have brought mine."

She shook the fox's hand and helped her father se up her equipment. In reality she mostly watched him, since she didn't know how to proceed.

"Hey, big girl, can you give me two hooks from inside the little pink box ?"

She rummaged inside her father's fishing bag, found the box and opened it.

"Now Judy, be careful, the hooks are barbed. If you stick one in your finger, chances are we'll have to dig to take it out."

"Yeah, I've the scar ta prove it !" Gideon showed his right paw, wearing thin scars. "Painful lessons" he added. It was enough warning for her to be extremely careful around the hook's little boxes. She gave two of them to her father.

...

The radio was playing relaxing ambient tunes from one of Gideon's CD. Judy's father was slumbering on his seat, his cap covering his eyes. Gideon had an empty gaze turned toward the calm stream.  
"So how is the blueberry pie business ?" She had asked in a low voice not wanting to disturb the fish nor her father.

"It's good. The shop's doin' great !"

"How did you get into the baking business ?"

"Oh. Uh. You remember I dropped high school after repeating 10th grade twice or thrice. Well after that I didn't do much, I wos still hangin' wid' Travis but he wos trying to become a mechanic so he didn't 've so much time anymore." He scratched his head. "I had began stealin' booze from pa at the time. Ah think he knew but wid' work and all, he and ma didn't have time to talk to me. They sent me to some kinda squirrel counselor after I crashed the car at the entrance of the garage. 'wos so drunk I didn't see the wall." He looked a bit ashamed

"The guy said he could help me to get out of the drinking habit, find a job and all but for that I had ta want it. I didn't really care anymore so just so my parent would lay off mah case, I kept going twice a week." He tugged at the rods. "In the end, I stopped drinkin', and he said to me that there wos a job for me at the Ol'Leaper's Bakery if I wanted it. I said there wos no way I'd work for some stupid loser rabbit. The way the squirrel looked at me, I thought he wos gonna shout. After that he said I needed some kinda real therapy cause I had some real problems. I don't remember the terms he used but I mostly answered that was bullshit. He gave me the adress to the 'real therapist', friend of his, I went and the guy wos a rabbit." he chuckled

"I wos a real jerk wid' him too, kept calling him a loser but he wouldn't quit, called my home when I didn't come or was late. So neither did I. I wanted to prove he was useless or whatevah. He said I had self-doubt and anger problem and projected on people to feel better." Gideon leaned back, looking a the sky with a smile "In the end, he got through to me. I can't understanded how he did so with the pig-head I wos, but he did. When I thank'd him he said he just asked the right question and I found the answers mahself. Then, when I went back to dah squirrel, he said the baking position wos still open." Judy was still listening. The fox yawned and she couldn't stop herself to do so too.

"I worked at Ol'Leaper's for three years. The ol' owner wos even more speciest than me, kept telling that foxes were red because they were made by the devil. He wasn't so bad, he still gave me a job, and he was the most honest mammal I ever met." he chuckled again, recalling the event. "Beside Ol'Leaper, there were other employes, rabbits too, a Carlin sum't'ing and a Jessica Hopps-"

"My cousin ?"

"Yeah. She didn't like the job though, I had been hired to replace her. Anyway, the ol'guy wanted to retire, saying that he would let the best baker buy his bakery. Loved the job, loved the place. And I wanted to prove the geezer species didn't mean shit. As if I learned that somehow." He snorted, containing his laugh.

"Three years, I worked my ass off. First to come, last to go, skipping off days, watching him work and learning as much as I could. In the end, he had to admit I was the best baker he ever had. Toldja he was honest. And he accepted ta' sell me the bakery. Pissed Carlin off so much he quit on the spot. I didn't really wan' it in the beginning, but since I love baking an' the patrons liked me, I thought I might as well go through with it."

"I renamed the shop 'Gideon Grey's Real Good Baked Stuff', I wanted it to be my own. I know it doesn't sound as good as Ol'Leaper's Bakery, but I wos a bit too enthousiast... After that, I associated with your parents and added the rest of the name to my delivery truck and on the front of my shop".

After he had told his story, a silence installed itself. Judy was taking in the fox's whole story. Finally she said :

"I'm impressed by you. I would never have imagined you could do all that."

"Hey don't beatcha self up. Neither did I !"

"Maybe but still. I owe you an apology."

He looked at her with a puzzled look "Why ? I was a jerk to you, not you to me."

"No you're wrong. Well, you were a jerk to me, that's true, but I was a jerk to you too. I called you small-minded, I thought you were small-minded, and always suspected you when bad stuff happenned at school."

"Yeah, but mostly it were my fault, 'remember the laxative fed marked chicken ?" He had a fanged grin akin to the one Nick wore sometimes.

 _It must be a fox thing._

"Numbered one, two and four. They looked for the third one for weeks. I must admit, it was hilarious." they laughed quietly but Judy continued "I still want to apologize. I was a jerk to you. I assumed that you were a complete idiot, and that you couldn't change. And that was partly due to my bias against foxes. So I'm sorry. Will you forgive me Gideon ?" She offered her paw and he immediately shook it.

"I change, you change. I don't see no reason to be upset with you."

As he said that, one the rods began to bend, the wire stretched. Something was pulling at the hook.

"We caught something !" said the vulpine as he rushed to pull the fish out. "Judy, get the net ! Stu, come an' help me, tha' one's gonna be big !"

* * *

The day before, she had fallen into her bed of exhaustion. She hadn't worked that much but the emotional and physical weight of her police work had suddenly washed over her. However she had trouble falling asleep, there was something amiss, something she couldn't pinpoint. She stared at the ceiling, trying to understand what was happenning, and the image of a fox appeared again . She chased it back to where it came from and turned to her side, burying her face in the pillow. Sleep slowly came to her, and she slipped into a calm slumber.

As she woke up, the sun was up, and she could tell it was already late. She felt icky, still wearing her clothes from the day before. The doe went straight to the shower, then dressed herself quickly and went down to the kitchen to take her breakfast. The house was calm. Sure, there were still bunnies, but way less than usual. As she stepped into the cooking room she saw a male bunny that she didn't recognise, back turned, going through the large fridge. He turned back to face Judy as he had heard her come.

"Hey sleepy head, you up at last ?"

"Uncle Terry ? Nice to see you ! How are you doing ? What are you doing here ?"

The rabbit took out a pack of soda-bottles from the fridge. "I'm good, thanks for asking. Your mom asked me to come and get those, we don't have anything to drink to the booth anymore."

"What ? What time is it ?" She took out her phone, she hadn't thought to look at it when she had woken up. It was past 3PM. "Oh carrots. That never happens."

"Seems to me you had hours of sleep to catch up to. Lots of them."

"Probably, yeah. Can I accompany you back to the festival ? Can I help you carry anything ?"

"Sure, there is another pack that I need to take. Carry it and I won't have to make two trip."

...

The car was running down the road, toward the city's center, where the festival took place.

"Did I miss anything important ?"

"Beside your father telling how he was so proud of you to everyone that came at the booth and your mother saying him to shut-up and serve the client, no, not much."

"Uneventful morning, so ?"

"As a carrot's festival day can be. There are thousands of people from towns around that have come this year. It's not the most we've ever had, but that sure is something. Oh, and Gideon's booth is right next to ours. It's always fun to see people react at him and your parents being so familiar with eachothers. You know what people think of bunnies with foxes."

"I know. Stereotypes die hard."

"But they do eventually. You opened lots of peoples' eyes, your parent's and mine included. No wonder your parents are proud. I know I am."

She and her uncle weren't so close, but she was really friend with his daughter Jessica, he had seen her grow up.

"Thanks, that means a lot."

The streets had been decorated with carrot themed posters and garlands. If anyone had been allergic to the color orange, he would have immediately died of choc. The town wasn't big, it was mostly a meeting center for farms around, so when the festival was up, there was not a place that didn't partake in the festivites. Music was played, people were loud and kids annoying. She and her uncle made their way to the Hopps' family booth.

It was probably one of the biggest in the festival, selling and presenting a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. Her parents and family were busy, cheerfully chatting with every client, boasting the quality of their products.

Judy went behind the booth with Terry, carrying one of the bottle-packs. She put it down and tapped her father's shoulder.

"Hey Jude, Jude the Dude !" he hugged her.

"Hey, Judy ! I thought you'd never wake up." said her mother.

"Yeah, as said Terry, I had hours of sleep that I needed to catch up to. I was more tired than I thought. Do you need help with the booth ?"

"No, not really, go and visit the festival. You can go say hello to Gideon, he is right next to us."

Before leaving, she came and said hello to every present member of her family. It took her a whole fifteen minutes before she would be done. She then came around to Gideon's pie and bakery smelling booth.

Gideon was having a conversation with a doe in his booth. It surprised Judy at first, but since her best friend was a fox, there was really no reason to be.

"Hey Judy, you're here !" greeted the fox

"Judy ?" The doe turned around. It was Jessica. She leapt to her and hugged her. "It's so nice to see you ! It has been so long ! How are you doing ? How is Zootopia ? How is being a cop ? Wha-"

"I'm good. Jessy, calm down, breath."

She and Jessica had been friend since they were little. Her cousing had left the house to live on her own in bunny-burrow a few weeks before Judy had left to get into the police academy. They were as close as siblings with complete opposite interest could be. Her cousin was easily excited and a tad hyperactive. For a bunny, the combination could be deadly. She had stopped talking but she was bouncing in place, keeping at bay the metric-ton of questions she wanted to unload.

"Slept well ?" the fox asked.

"Like a log. I hadn't slept like this for a long time. Never in fact. Almost twenty hours."

He took out a plate with a slice of blueberry pie "Hungry ?"

She was about to politely refuse, but at that moment Judy and her body remembered they hadn't eaten that morning, or at noon. Her stomach loudly gurggled.

"Of course, thank you !" She devoured the slice in a matter of second. "Sorry, I haven't eaten today yet."

"In that case, you can have this." He took one of his carrot-pie and cut a large slice that he gave her.

"That's nice, but I'd like to pay." She didn't like handouts, it made her embarassed and it happenned a lot in Zootopia. Some people even paying for her groceries to thank her for the Bellwether case.

"Nonsense, those are your families' carrots. Take it, really." She hesitated but the fox's warm smile put down her resolve. And she was still hungry.

"Fine."

She glanced at Jessica. She was still bouncing in place but at a way higher frequency. Judy ate her slice of carrot. It was delicious, perfect mix of sweet and salty. Gideon really was a great baker. She finished the slice and turned back to Jessica who seemed about to implose.

"Okay Jess, go ahead, but one question at a time."

"How is Zootopia ?"

"Big. No gigantic. There is always something happenning and it can be scary, but it really is a nice place."

"How's the police life ?"

"Well it's tiring but really rewarding. People are not always happy to see us, but sometimes you get to really help someone and I think it's really what it's all about."

Jessica would have kept asking question for a long time but Judy had some questions too.

"My turn to ask something. I know you and Gideon met when his bakery was still called Ol'Leaper's Bakery. I thought you quit after that."

"Oh, I did. The work was too boring. I wanted to do something more intersting, where I could move more. We didn't work long together but we stayed friend. When he needs an extra-pair of hands, I'm happy to oblige."

"Yes, during the festival and near holidays, I can need part-timers. She's the first I call every time." Added the fox.

"And what do you do now ?"

"I'm a post-woman, I deliver mail."

"I can't imagine how that is a more interesting or exciting work."

"It can be if you know where are all the speed-traps and side roads." Jessica winked at her. She had never been the last to cause mischief. Judy rolled her eyes but said nothing. Bunny-burrows wasn't her jurisdiction, and as long as she stayed careful and did not hurt anyone, she could let it slide.

After that, Judy visited the festival on her own, sometime recognized by acquaintances. She was impressed by how much people had come to a festival that was at first a simple town gathering. Soon it was the end of the day and she helped her parents pack-up the few things they hadn't sold. They closed-up the booth and went home. That evening, Judy called Nick to take news, a bit concerned about him since he hadn't really been okay the week before. His face appeared on the screen.

"Hey officer Carrots, how are you doing ?"

"Fine and you officer Slick ?"

"Good. Having fun with all your carrots ? You're not feeling too lonely ?"

"I have 275 siblings. If I wanted to feel lonely, I'd have to try pretty hard. Yeah I'm having fun."

But the truth was, she was feeling lonely. Even though she rally loved her family, she couldn't talk, couldn't share with them like she could share with him. She missed him, but having the opportunity to see him on muzzletime made up for the time they spent appart.

She recounted the events of the two days to Nick.

...

"You slept twenty hours. Sheesh, you really needed those vacations !"

"Seems that way. Maybe I also needed a calm place to stay. I can't believe how loud Buck and Pronks can be compared to my siblings."

"You really should move."

"I don't have time to look for a new flat."

"You're on vacation, you have time. You could even leave your dump and crash at my appartment for a few weeks. I've meant to buy a new couch anyway. Or you could sleep with me in the bed, my sexy body didn't seem to faze you last time." He had the shit-eating grin again. It used to drive her nuts, know she liked seeing it. Most of the time.

"That's sweet but no. Bad idea. If I crash at yours, I'll get too caught up into work and end up never moving out."

"And the downside is ?" Still that grin. He was only half-joking but she couldn't see it. And she had no answer to that.

Hoping she wouldn't see her blush through the phonescreen, she switched topic.

"Unrelated, but how were your first days of vacation."

"Well..."

* * *

 **That's all for today, see you at the end of the week :)**


	8. 08 Hungover Fox

**As always, first things first, the reviews answers :**

 **Foxlover91 : I wanted to write about them for a bit, they will be of some importance later (much later I'd say). And about Judy and the change of pace, you can expect more of it in chapters to come. About what Nick would do with his time while she's away... I don't know, you will probably have to read this chapter to find out :)**

 **And now, onward the (hopefully) good stuff !**

* * *

That ceiling had a nice texture. The wood was old and worn, there were traces of water but the roof had probably been repaired before he came to live here. The steel beams were visible and where someone could have thought they were ugly, he found them oddly comforting. He thought it was because he had spent time sleeping in wharehouses. He also liked how he could hear the rain when it was falling. It had a relaxing effect on him.  
But now there was no rain. And even if there would have been, he wouldn't be able to relax. He hadn't slept for two days, or barely. He had spent the his first vaction day roaming in his flat and the whole following night thinking about how he needed to meet his mother. And it was already morning.

There was no scenario he could imagine where that ended in a good way.  
In one she didn't even regonize him, in one she shouted at him it was too late and she never wanted to see him again, in one she had adopted and replaced him, in one she threw him out when she learnt he was a cop.

He knew that objectively, very few of those scenarios were likely to happen, but that did nothing to calm his worry.  
Part of him wanted Judy to be here, to be with him when he would face this, but he didn't want to show her how vulnerable he could be. Not that way. To many variables, not enough control.

Finnick. He could take Finnick. The fennec knew his mother, hell, it was him that gave her the money. He could pick the little fox up and go see her. Even ask him for advice, he probably knew her more than Nick did.

He took out his phone and dialed his friend. The phone rang, and rang, and no-one and answered. He tried again. And again. He decided to leave a voice-mail.

"Hey Finnick, buddy ! How is it going ? Say, how about we meet today ? It's been a long time ! Call me when you get this message. Bye !"

He put down the phone and went to fix himself a breakfast. Omelette and coffee. He needed proteins and caffeine. He gulped his meal quickly and slumped into the squeaking sofa, turning on the TV. It was mostly morning garbage, the kind that sucked at your brain, hours at a time, just to shove advertisement in your brain when it was properly relaxed. Exactly what he needed.

But he couldn't relax. He stood up and went straight to his phone, it had ringed, he was sure of it.

It didn't have.

 _Screw this, I'm gonna see him now._

Nick put on proper clothes, a coat, and went out.

...

A mild cold breeze shuffled his fur. He had always liked the cold air fo the morning. It kept him awake, aware of his surrounding. He was walking in a quick pace, trying to remember his friend's favorite parking spaces. He had already gone to three of them and he was nowhere to be seen. He decided to try a dive where they often went together in their huslting days called the Krispy Krab. It was at the frontier between Downtown and Tundratown.  
He entered the diner and the smell of frying and poorly cooked meat met his nostrils. He didn't mind, in his brain food smell always meant good news.

"Hey Bob, how are you doing ?" He said hopping on a barstool

"It's going well." answered Hyena holding the fort. "What can I do you for ?"

"I need Finnick's current parking spot. You wouldn't happen to know where it is ? Or who would ?"

The hyena scratched his head, thinking and then answered.

"I know he found a new place he liked a while ago. I knew where it was but memory is hazy..."  
He had put his open paw on the counter, palm up. Bob knew things, a lot, about everyone, it was the main reason why it was the first place Nick had tried to ask.  
And every piece of information had a price to him.

Nick was tempted to flash out his badge but that meant the information he would receive in exchange would be the last Bob would ever give him. Instead, he took out twenty buck and placed it in his informant's hand. The bills disappeared in his pocket.

"I won't give you more."

"That's enough for me. The guy new parking spot is in a back-alley near the Swimming Shrew, East of downtown. Want a coffe with that ? It's on the house."

"Thanks Bob, but no thanks. Kind of in a rush. Have a nice day" He leapt of the stool and went out.

"Have a nice day too."

...

As Bob had said, the van was parked in the back alley behind the Swimming Shrew. The last time Nick had lost Finnick's trail, a week passed before the little fennec reappeared and Nick had never known why or where he had gone. All he remembered is that he had resorted to live in a bunch of cardbox until his friend had returned.

He came at the door of the van and knocked. No one answered but he heard muffled noises. There also was a faint smell of bad booze and vodka. He reached out for the handle and opened the backdoors. The inside was filled with empty bottles and a half naked and probably hungover fennec fox.

"Finnick ? Is everything alright ?"

"Hhhgn." was the only answer he got.

 _Definitely hangover._

The last time Nick had saw him in this state, the little vulpine had taken three days to get back to his decent self. Nick closed the doors and went to nearest store to get a water bottle and a bottle of advil. Finnick hadn't moved when he was back.

"Okay Finnick, wake up. It's me buddy, it's Clawsmas in advance, I have advil and water."

"Hhgn. Leave me alone." The Finnick rolled to show Nick his back.

"Not gonna happen. You need to hydrate."

"I don't care. If you're not a booze, I got no time for you."

"You can take what I have or I can go light up your car stereo and blast something through those sweet loudspeaker you have installed. Your call."

"Fuck you Nick. I'm up."

Nick opened both advil and water bottles and gave them to his friend

"Here you go."

The fennec fox took two advils and downed a quarter of the bottle. Every move he made seemed to send pain in his body.

"Whaddya want ?"

"Can't a friend go and see one of his just to take news ?"

"When ya want news, you call. If you wanna meet, you call first."

"I did call first."

"I didn't answer. Ya came anyway. Dontchu take me for a foul and ask whatcha gotta ask. Sooner you get the fuck outta here, sooner I can go back to sleep. Or to drink. I don't care."

Nick didn't mind his friend crappy mood. He knew he was like that only because he was in pain, physically and probably emotionally. He began to talk.

"Well, you were right. It's time for me to meet my mother, so I think I'm gonna go see her."

"What do I care ?"

"I thought maybe you could come for moral support. Like today or tomorrow before I lose my courage. But I don't think in your state you can or want to be a support to anyone."

"Good guess kid. Anything else you wanna ask to Ol'useless me ?"

"Not really."

"Then fuck off."

"No."

"I don't need help. Get."

"Listen Finnick, you were there for me when I was a kid. I didn't do it a lot, but I could confide in you. You wouldn't have shit-faced yourself that much over nothing." Nick thought that his friend needed to talk about what troubled him. Talking about one's problem could help, he was slowly starting to realise that.

"Ugh"

 _I'm not about to talk about that to the kid. He has enough on his plate as it is._

"Please buddy, talk to me."

 _Fuck it._

"If tha' means you'll get outta mah fur, okay. Let's do this." He looked around. "Shit kid, got a cig ?"

"I never smoked tobacco."

"Good for you. Hah, here they are." He took a half crushed cigarette pack, got rid of two broken coffin nails and lighted and intact one. "Aaaah, that hits the spot." he inhaled two or three times before beggining to talk again.

"Okay, it's about a lady. -Don'tchu put on that smug smile, I'll punch you- Like, you know, a proper lady. Bit older than I am." Nick raised a brow and quickly put it back in place. Finnick rarely spoke about the females he saw or dated. He had one night stands sometimes, but rarely anything more. "Anyway, I know her for like, a bit of time. Like we know each other for a while you see. She had a husband but h-"

 _If I say the kid she's a widow, he'll put two and two together._

"Basically, he left her. It was long time ago but she maybe hasn't put dat behind her. And maybe she got other problems. Or maybe I'm a fennec fox and she ain't. Whatever. Everytime I try to be nice, or to talk to her, I do something stoopid or she gets upset over something I can't understand. Last time wos pretty bad. And now I'm trying to get her outta my head." He shrugged "And that ain't gonna be. So I'm trying to cope how I can." he said poiting at an empty bottle with his thumb.

"I'm sorry buddy, I don't know what to say."

There was a long silence between them, both staring blankly at the distance. Finnick took another sip from the water bottle.

"Then say nothing. There ain't nothing to say anyway." He made a pause, his blank gaze still lost for a bit, before putting it back on the kid's face. He felt a rush of violent emotions tearing at his guts, first he thought he was about to puke, bile coming from his throat, but he was something else. Hangover always did that to him, made him blurt out things he'd never say otherwise.

"Don't be as stupid as me kid. People you l- People you love" _Shit, I said it._ "You tell 'em. Don't wait like me for things to get all screwed up. You got chances to make things right, make things work, you take 'em." He put a finger on Nick's chest ."You don't, I'll have my bat meetya head."

The red fox had nothing to answer to this, so he stayed silent and nodded.

"Thanks for listening. Sob-fest is over, now fuck-off."

Nick left his friend hoping he would quickly get better. Seeing Finnick fall this low had been hard but it strenghened his resolve. He had to see his mother before it was too late.

"So that's everything Carrots. Finnick's down the drain, trying to forget some lady that broke his heart. And I'm about to have a sleepless night while I wait for tomorrow to see my mother. Perhaps she'll break my heart, as his lady did him, but good news is, I'll have someone to drink and mope around with." That wasn't really a joke. The smile was on his face but not in his eyes. On the other side of the phone, Judy saw through it instantly but decided to leave his mask on.

"You're going to be okay Nick. No way your mother's going to reject you. If she does, Ill go talk to her myself."

"I'm not sure a bunny-cop would be able to change her mind about anything. She's not too fond of the cops."

"Why not ?"

"She's a fox."

"You ? Stereotyping your own species ?"

"Old habits die hard." The fox yawned "I think I'm going to hit the sack. With a bit of luck, I may be able to shut my eyes long enough to believe I fell asleep. Nighty-night Carrots."

"Good night Nick."

 _I somehow highly doubt that._

* * *

 **I know what you think. This chapter is way too short, and I totally agree with you !**

 **Do you know what that means ?**


	9. 09 a Slap in the Face

**What that meant was : I'm not ending the week with a chapter this short.**

 **But maybe this will be worse ? Maybe I'll leave you with a cliffhanger this time... Would I be that sly ? Would I dare ?**

 **Foxlover91 : I don't think it would be Nick's style to forget about his friends, and Finnick is like brother to him.**

 **I hope yo will enjoy this next chapter !**

* * *

But he had slept. He had switched on and off all night, waking up bad dream after bad dream. In one, he was trying to find someone, running through the precinct's hallways. The architecture was nonsensical and he had ended lost and alone. In another he was at a burial, of whom he couldn't remember. People's faces were hidden, and also he was sure he knew them he still felt lonely. In his last dream, he was in a hospital bed, feeling life slowly escape his grasp a feeling of regret washing over him. As he had woken up for the last time, he felt his face being wet from tears. He was shaking and hoping the night would soon end, too scared to go back to sleep.

Luckily, it was the early morning, around 7AM. He was far from a morning mammal, but got up and fixed himself a quick breakfast. Immediately afterwards, he got dressed and went out. He felt he needed the cold breeze and humid morning air to clear his head. He was walking lost in his thoughts when a voice came to him.

"Hey, Nick, how is it going ? What are you doing here ?" It was Wolford's voice. Nick lifted his eyes to look at the smiling canid.

"Hey Wolford, I'm good. I was just walking around randomly- Oh." His steps had taken him to the precinct.

"You miss work that much ?"

"Seems like it. Want to grab a cup of coffee before work ?"

The wolf officer looked at his watch.

"Sorry, not today, I'm waiting for Wight- I mean Blackfur. We have paperwork to do and she wanted me here early."

"Ah, no paperwork for me. Am I glad to be on vacation..."

"Yeah, twist the knife, that's right." laughed the good natured canid.

"Anyway, if you don't have time for coffee, I'm going to go. I still have some wandering to do. Have a nice day !"

"You too !"

Nick left, thoughts swirling in his mind. He had inconsciously come to the precinct. He didn't know what to do with the thought and choose to discard it. It was only 7AM, but he decided to go to his mother's house, he could still wait for a decent hour to show-up in a coffee-shop near it.

The building her mother lived in was situated in south Downtown, near Savanna Central. His mother had moved just after his father's death, probably not wanting to be reminded of him by living in the house they had shared for several years.

Now, he was on the curb opposite to that building and he was feeling his resolve falter. He looked around and saw an opened diner. It was strange this early but not that much. He made his way to it but stopped in his track with a certitude. If he entered the diner know, if he delayed meeting his mother any more, he would give up. He knew himself well enough that 'being too early to go now' was only a false pretense. He turned around and went straight to his mom's building. He entered the dimly lit hallway, and the inner doors were closed. Guest had to use an intercom to be able to go in. He didn't want to use it. He wanted to see his mother, to not risk her denying seeing her.

He waited around five minutes to see if some inhabitant would show up and in the meantime checked his mother's appartment number. 503, fifth floor.

 _Fuck this._

He searched the pocket of his old coat and found a pair of thin metal rods. He inserted them in the keyhole, thankful that the building was old enough to not use magnetic cards. It took him only a minute to get the doors to open.

 _Haven't completely lost my touch._

He found the stairs but no elevator. Of course there were not going to be an elevator. His heart was pumping by the time he reached his mother's floor. He wasn't tired, he was terrified, facing the 503's door. He approached a shaking finger to the doorbell and rang it.

He waited for a minute. No one was coming. He tried to ring a second time.

 _She's not here._

A part of him was disappointed but the other was relieved. He was about to turn around and go when a bathrobe wearing vixen with an annoyed expression opened the door.

"Perry, I told you, I'll pay the rent tommorrow, no need to come this early to-"

"Hi mom." It was a mix between the cool and serious mask. A combination he used only for important occasion.

She stayed frozen in place for a few second and then moved away from the door. He took it as his cue to enter. He could feel the thump of his heart in every part of his body. His brain was blank. He took a few steps inside and turned to face his mother.

"Mom ?"

She approached him in quick steps, her expression switching to anger and slapped him heavily accross the face.

 _Anger scenario then._

As he closed his eyes, ready for another slap, she hugged him. "It's been so long. Why the fuck did you wait for so long ? You fucking dumb kit !" He wrapped his arms around her, a mix of emotion washing over him. They were too strong to bear and his legs gave in. They both fell on their knees and Nick felt something tearing in his heart. Something old, sad, something like regret and loathing. He cast away the mask, slumping in his mother's arms, letting go of twenty years of tears. She rocked him during what he felt like an eternity, he couldn't stop sobbing, words were stuck in his throat.

When he finally calmed down, he lifted up his head to face his mother, she was crying too.

"Oh mom. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I'm nothing but a dumb fox. I should've come sooner. I should never have left." He helped her up and held her. He found the living room and a sofa where he sat with her.  
The room had cream colored worn wallpaper, an old buffet and shelves full of old books.

"I was- I don't know-"

"I thought you'd come back on your own. I should have come and bring you back."

"Don't blame yourself, it was I that left."

"I'm your bloody mother !" she cried "I should have done what was best for you ! Even if it was against your own will !"

Nick didn't really know what to say. He knew she was right. But he also knew why she didn't do it. She had always respected and supported his choices as a kit. She was the kind that let people do their own mistakes, helping them back up when they fell.

"I don't blame you. You respected my decision even if it was stupid. And I wouldn't be who I am today otherwise."

"And I'm proud of you Nick. I'm proud to call you my son, I always have been, and so was your father." She was holding his face between her paws.

"I'm proud to be your son."

They hugged again.

...

The mood had slowly lightened, they had stopped talking and were simply enjoying eachother's presence. Having not slept much, Nick yawned. Immediately his mother stood up.

"I'm going to make some coffee, do you want some breakfast ?"

"I already had one, but I'm not against a second one." He was about to stood up.

"Wait here. I didn't prepare breakfast for my son in twenty years." She looked excited, and cheerily left to the kitchen. She had aged but to him, she looked the same as he had left her.

The smell of coffee, pancakes, sausages and omelette had filled the appartment. Nick had had to struggle not to go in the kitchen and help his mother. He understood how much it meant for her to do this for him.

"It's ready" came the vixen's voice.

He bounced off the couch and went in a controlled pace to the kitchen. What he saw wasn't a breakfast, it was a feast.

"Mom, you didn't have to..."

"But I wanted to. I never had the occasion to spoil my kit, you won't deny it to me now."

"Alright, I give up." He sat down and she poured him some coffee, an then sat down facing him. They both ate silently. It tasted good. Great even. He was struck by the wave of memories that rushed to his mind brought back by the food placed before him. Tears slowly filled his eyes and by the time he had finished eating, they were rolling down his cheeks. His mother came and hugged him.

"You were always such an emotional kit."

"I changed during those twenty years you know. I'm not a kit anymore." He joked. "And I'm usually not that emotional."

 _Maybe I should slow down on the 'emotional bunnies' jokes with Judy._

"You can't hide from your mother, Nick."

"I successfully did so for twenty years."

 _Did I just say that ?_

He lowered his head. "Sorry mom."

She burst into laughter "Fuck, Nick ! You're your father's son. The best jokes at the worst time !"

"What ?" He hadn't expected this reaction.

She was still chuckling when she answered. "He had really slowed down on his humour when you grew up, but if there was a bad situation, he was always the first to point out the irony. That did for some awkward silence when he met my parents. Oh god, they hated him so much at first."

"I knew my sense of humour couldn't come from you."

"Yep, I only gave you my good looks, pride and stupidity."

"Thanks mom. They were really useful."

...

She was washing the dishes while he wiped them. At first she was reluctant to let him but he had insisted, saying there was only so much he could accept to let her do without helping.

"So what did you do those last few months ?"

"Well, I'm a cop, as you probably know by now."

"Yes Finnick told me do you like it ? Is it the thing you always wanted to do ?"

Nick thought for a moment. "I like it, I really do. At first I wasn't sure it was for me. I've spent my life hustling mammals, trying to take advantage of others. When I entered the academy, I only did it because Judy believed I could do it. It was the first time another mammal believed in me."

"Hey, I always believed in you !" retorted her mother with a hurt look.

"Sorry, I mean, someone other that my family. Not that what you feel doesn't count, I mean-" it wasn't how he wanted the conversation to go, his shoulders slumped and he gave her a glance. She had a discreet sly grin. "-and you're toying with me."

"Your father wasn't the only one with a sense of humor. So you were saying this bunny believed in you ? It's why you tried to become a cop in the first place ?"

"Yes. She believed in me, encouraged me. Not in a patronizing way, she genuinely believe deep down I was a good mammal. I must admit she sees more in me than I do." he shrugged.

The vixen didn't answer. This bunny was really something else, being an influnece big enough to motivate this pig-headed fox to turn his life around. She said nothing though, waiting for her kit to tell more.

"So I entered the academy. And let me tell you, it was hard. Hardest thing I've ever attempted in my life. But this time I couldn't give up, not with Judy behind me. So I pushed myself and here I am, corporal at precinct One, working with the best the city has to offer."

"That's quite the achievement. And so, the job do you like it ?"

"Yes and No. The job in itself isn't the most interesting or exciting I've ever done. But the fact that I can help people, that I feel I'm doing a difference from my mere presence in the force is great. Showing the city that one of us sly fox can be as upstanding as any other mammal... Those are great feelings. And I wouldn't trade it back with my old life. Not for anything in this world."

That, and he could spend most of his time with Judy, which was a non-insignificant bonus.

The washing continued, the clinking of the dishes and cutlery the only ones to break the silence. Finally, the vixen spoke again.

"And what about the nighthowler case. I know you were involved, but how much did you do ?"

"Ho well..."

He recalled to her the events of the nighthowler case, and how at first he had been hostile to Judy. He could see his mother tense up about how he had treated her, deliberately risking the case just to mess with her. Her expression turned to horrified when she learned about the events with mister Big and how he risked his life dealing with Manchas, the panther turned savage.

"You really took lots of risk Nick."

"Yeah. But in the heat of the moment, I didn't really think about it that much."

He explained how they had found the asylum, using the camera system and how the mayor Lionheart was arrested. He then recalled the press conference and how he was angry at Judy for what she had said, and how he had again let someone close to him.

"She was a bunny who grew up on a farm, I should have understood that her bias wasn't really her fault. I came back to the precinct some times later to speak with her, to lay down to her how much she had hurt me, but they said she wasn't here anymore, on vacation or something. Immediately I understood she had quit. She had hurt the city, she had hurt me, and discarded her dream because of it."

The memory was painful, but compared to what he had felt that day, it was close to nothing.

"And then she came back. She apologized about what she had said, and how stupid she had been. Truth is, she didn't even need to. I'd have come and help her either way."

Then he recalled how they found out about the night-howler, the metro tracks, the museum and the ruse they used to get Bellwether's confession.

"She accepted that you put your jaws around her neck ? She must have been pretty terrified, and desperate to use this plan."

"Truth is, she wasn't. She was the one that suggested it. There was no smell of fear from her during our play."

"What ?"

"Yeah, she's the most brave and crazy rabbit I've ever encountered."

"If only she was a vixen." Taunted his mother. Nick barely held back the blush and embarrassed smile.

 _Yeah, if only._

Then he talked about how Judy had pushed for him to get accepted by the police academy despite his background. He talked about being partners with Judy, and how that was the best thing that ever happenned to him. He talked about how the interview's question had shattered his beliefs about deserving his place and had made him lose control the week before his vacations.

"That's part of the reason I'm here today. I had to stop letting my unfinished business affect my life. You know, learn to face my demons."

"That's very brave of you, few mammals have this kind of courage."

 _I know I don't._

"The other part why I'm here is Finnick."

"Finnick ?" she had been able to control her reaction at the last second. The plate she was washing slid from her paw but she caught it before it could crash in the sink.

"Yeah. A few weeks back, I was having a meal with him and Judy, he talked about you, how I should stop being stupid and come see you. I dismissed it. I still hadn't taken care of the problem with the interview's question at the time. I didn't feel like a legitimate cop and butted head with chief Bogo because of it."

"You butted head with a buffalo ?" she asked, half-joking half-worried.

"Not litteraly. I shouted at him about not giving Judy the partner she deserved."

"You shouted at your boss ?"

"Yep. To punish me, he gave me a week of vacation." The shit-eating grin was back.

 _He's so like his father._

"Anyway, about Finnick." he continued "I kind of avoided the conversation at the time, but I went back to see him yesterday." He made a pause, trying to find his words. "I wanted him to come with me today, for moral support. I wasn't sure I'd have the courage to come alone. I had to ask around, since he had moved his van." He scratched his head, leaving aside the detail of how exactly he had found his friend.

"Well I found him alright. He was the most hangover I had ever seen him be. Moping about a lady friend of his. He said that I should go and tell the people that I loved how important they were to me. I think that's what gave me the most resolve." Still wiping the dishes, he didn't see how his mother was affected by what he had just said. Her jaws were clenched and her she was squeezing the sponge so hard her joints ached.

"I don't know who this lady is, but I've seen nothing affect him more until now. Maybe he was still a bit drunk under the hangover and that's why he told me all this. He even said maybe it was because he was a fennec fox and she weren't..." He trailed off. "I mean, species shouldn't count when love enters the equation, should it ?"

 _Should it ?_

Vivienne had put down the last plate and was looking at her son. She had a kind smile with a hint of mischief. "For how long ?"

"For how long what ?"

She raised her eye to the ceiling. "For how long did you love that bunny ?"

"What ?"

"Oh please Nicky" He cringed, he always hated this nickname, she used it when she was about to drop some hard truth on him. The vixen began counting on her finger "She hustles you, drags you around the city, risks your life for her investigation, risks her life for yours, and then you confide in her about the reason you left our home. And then, when she hurts you, betrays your trust and leave the city, you mope around and try ot find her. And when she comes back, you immediately go back to risk your life, easily putting her words behind you. Then you turn your life around and become a cop. Maybe it was because you wanted to become someone else, but you can't pretend it wasn't because you wanted to be near her. Have you heard yourself or seen your face when you talk about her ? And do you honestly think my joke about her not being a vixen was innocent ?"

She had a smug smile, he recognized it as it was the same he used when he had hustled someone.

Embarassed was to weak of a word to describe Nick's state of mind. He could only look at his hind paws, his face burning red.

The vixen crossed her arms. "So how long ?"

"The carrot-pen hustle. I couldn't help it. But, I mean, she's a rabbit, I'm a fox. We're polar opposite. And she only sees me as a friend."

She chuckled. "Nick, I hate the idea of you getting hurt. I've spent those last twenty years being worried sick. An even I, have a hard time imagining how a predator and a prey could get along as a couple. But if you don't tell her how you feel, you'll never know how she feels. Trust me, I know how a situation can deteriorate when you keep your feelings bottled up." She was cupping his chin with her paw. "It's the first advice I give you as a mother in twenty years. Please, for your sake and for hers, tell her. As soon as you can."

His eyes seemed reflective, he looked around, then took off the apron he was wearing.

"You're right. I must tell her." He began walking to the door of the appartment and took his coat. His mother followed him.

"What ? Right now ? You know, you don't have to rush this."

"It's been almost a year, I wouldn't call this rushing. Sorry to leave you like this but I've stood around enough waiting for things to happen when I should have acted."

The vixen chuckled. "You're just like your father, you know ? He was always making big decisions in spurs. He was always so much braver than I was."

This last sentence was all he needed as a last boost. He had put on his coat, going back to his mother giving her a business card.

"The card's obsolete, but the number is still valid. It's mine, so don't hesitate to call." he hugged her a last time "Life's too short to act like a coward. I'm glad I finally came to see you. I promise, I soon as I come back I'll spend time with you." as he ûlled away he gave her a peck on the cheek. She answered with a mooch on his snout.

"I've waited twenty years to be reunited. I think I can wait a bit more, but you better tell me everything about this when you get back. I love you son. Take care."

...

Nick had left the appartment and his mother was alone again. She took off her own appron and came to sit on her old couch. She stared blankly into space for a while, a storm of conflicting emotion howling inside her. Finally she took her head in her paws, massaging her temples. She felt happy, her son had finally come back to her, they had talked, even joked.

She knew there was no way they would make up for all those missed years but she swore herself that she wouldn't waste what time she could have with him now. Her thought turned to Finnick, to the realisation of her hypocritical attitude. How could she have given her son advices on how to treat the people he cared about when she wasn't able to follow those same advices herself ?

 _Fuck this, I'm through beeing a coward. I'm through running away._

She took her own coat and left.

* * *

 **Ohoho, things are happening fast ! Big emotions trigger big decisions. Are all our protagonists taking the road to happiness ? Or are they all rushing to their doom ?**

 **I wish I knew.**


	10. 10 Reckless Foxes

**Hello readers !**

 **First, and as usual, responses to the reviews.**

 **Foxlover91 : I was looking forward to write this bit the moment I decided this would be a long running story. Expect things to move from this moment forward. They gained confidence, true, but will it be enough ? DUN DUN DUN...**

 **gonekrazy3000 : You're taking a leap here. Finnick is not Nick's dad yet :) . Maybe it won't work out. After all Fin and Vi have been blind to eachother's interest for most of their lives. Things could still go sour... Will they, won't they ?**

 **And here is what you are waiting for.**

* * *

Nick was running down the street, toward his appartment, he was trying to make up some sort of plan, some sort of way he should tell what he felt to Judy. To the bunny he loved. He didn't have a car, but he could ride the train, all he needed now was to now where the doe exactly lived. He took out his phone and dialed a number quickly.

"Hey, Nick" came the jovial voice of Clawhauser. "how are your vacations?" He heard the fox's panting. "Are you running ?"

"Hey, Ben. Good and yes. I need a favor, I need Judy's adress."

"Why ? Don't you already know it ?"

"Her adress at Bunny Burrow !"

"Oh right. Why do you need it ?" The cheetah's voice was like a purr, heavy with undertone. "I'm not supposed to give you that kind of info."

"It's really important and really personnal. Please Ben ? I'll buy you a box of donuts."

"You'll have to tell me what this is all about afterwards. Do you want me to say or text it ?"

"A text would be perfect."

"Okay, you'll receive it in a minute"

"Thanks buddy, bye."

"Bye Nick."

 _Now to get to the train station._

He arrived at the station as his phone rang with Judy's adress. The next train to Bunny Burrow was in more than two hours.

 _Shit. Think. You need a car. Who has cars ?_

An idea came through his mind, his smiled mischievously and dialed another number.

"Hello, FruFru Big speaking, who is it ?" came a squeaky voice.

"Hey Fru Fru, it's Nick. Could you make me a favor and lend me a car ?"

"Of course Nick, what do you need it for ?"

"I have something important to do, and I really need one as soon as possible."

He heard a muffled discussion, and soon another voice with a heavy accent spoke to him.

"Hello Nicholas" It was mister Big's voice "I heard you needed a car ?"

"Yes, I do. For no more than five days."

"Why do you need a car. Don't try and avoid answering this question."

"It's about Judy."

"Is she in danger ? Should I send bears with it ?"

"No. Not at all. It's just that I have- huh- imporant business to discuss with her."

"Oh. Of course. In that case where should I send it ?"

"Downtown train station please. Could it have a removable flashing light ? And a manual transmission ? Oh, and I may abuse some trafic regulations."

"No problem. It will be here in three minutes. And Nick ?"

"Yeah ?"

"Good luck." He heard a chuckle before the shrew hung up.

...

As the shrew had said, a car driven by a panther came and pulled over near the minute-depot. It was a dark blue Clawdi TT.

 _Okay, that's a car alright._

As the driver got out Nick recognized Renato Manchas. He was a bit to big for this model and had had to squeeze himself to drive it.

"Hey Nick. How are you doing ?"

"Great, You ?"

"My job is to drive those cars around, what do you think ?" he winked.

The panther gave him the keys.

"The flashing light is in the glove compartment. I've taken the liberty to put some snacks with it."

"You're the best Manchas."

"I try. Have a nice trip."

"Thanks."

Nick climbed in, immediately putting up the flashing light and lighting it on. The siren screamed, he pulled out quickly and launched the car on the city street in a way too high speed to be actually safe. It was stupid, he was probably putting his job at risk by doing this. But he didn't care, it all felt too good.

He was out of the city in less than ten minutes, cars were pulling over before him to let him through. He technically wasn't abusing authority since he didn't use his badge. People simply assumed it was a cop car. He even passed a police car and saw the officers saluting him. They couldn't have recognized the fox, the glass was tinted. Quickly, he was on the highway, at a speed still way too high, but he still didn't care. The engine was roaring under the hood, and it called all his primal insinct to push it more. He felt like a hunter closing in on a prey. His heart was pumping blood, his adrelin was near the highest it could get.

* * *

She was facing him, not sure about what to do or what to say. She had a plastic bottle of cheap wine in her hands. The vixen sighed, closing her eyes. She left a few second pass and opened them.

"I- It's been a long time since I did come to see you. Since we did speak. I wanted to say I'm sorry. About everything. About those things I said, about how we always fought in the end. I know I have a short temper, but that's a thing I can't really change about myself." Tears had began rolling down her cheek, ruining the make-up she had quickly put on while she was in the ZUG, but she didn't care.

"Nick came back. And I'm so proud of him, he became someone he thought I could be proud of. We could be proud of. But I always was proud of him and I'm sure you always were too." She fell on her knees.

"It's important that you know that I love you. And I always will. But now I need to move on. I now that's what you want me to do, that where you are, you are cheering for me, that you want me to be happy." She wiped her eyes, but tears were still pouring. "You'd make a snarky remark too, I don't know which but you would."

She looked at the plaque 'John Lycus Wilde, a loving father and husband'. The dirt had been reworked, probably so that weed and flowers would grow again. The people who tended to the cemetery were diligent.

"You were right all along you know ? Even if I would have never admitted it when you were still alive. I was too proud for my own good. And too much of a coward to try and change. How much time have I wasted because of this ? Well I'm done, you can have the last laugh now. You really were right all along."  
She opened the bottle and gulped a quarter of it. "I'd have bought something better but I don't have a corkscrew on me."

She emptied the rest of the botte on the tomb. "Here is to you, John Lycus Wilde."

...

She caught a few people staring at her in the ZUG, but a few irritated glances made them return to their own business. She took out her make-up kit and tried to arrange the disaster that was now her face. She did what she could and got out at Hill street, in the northern part of Downtown. She made her way into the street, steeling herself before arriving to her destination.

It looked like a different place during the day, more clean than she thought. The van was still here, its doors were open and a shirt-less cigarette-smoking fennec was putting soaked cothes on a drying rack installed near his vehicle. She approached him but Finnick didn't face her. She was certain he had recognized her from the corner of his eye.

"Fin ?"

"Wot, Vi ? Came to shout at me again ?"

 _Okay. Deep breathe. Don't lose it yet, he has a right to be pissed._

"Face me, Finnick."

He sighed and flicked down his smoke between his hinder paw, stepping on it to put it out. He then turned to face her, crossing his arm looking with a half annoyed, half expectant expression.

"Wot ?"

 _Deep breathe, you can do it._

"I- Came to apologize. I'm sorry about how I acted."

"Wot ?" The fennec tone had now hints of surprise.

"I was confused and sad, and... you gave me that money like everything was normal, and it pissed me off."

His look was now balancing between surprise and confusion.

"What I wanted that day was to say that, yeah I missed Nick, but I- I missed you too."

"Huh ?" He couldn't even articulate, his face was blank from surprise, his eyes slowly opening wide.

She leaned toward him, their snout were almost touching.

She tilted her head slightly and went ahead, giving him a hesitant kiss. "I'm telling you that I love you Finnick." she kissed him again, more deeply this time, and he returned it. He tasted like tobacco, cheap vodka and bad coffee. She tasted like breakfast, hopes and dreams. They stayed like that, his right hand caressing her cheek, for a few second before breaking it up.

"I love you too Vivienne." She was blushing and he was too.

 _Oh for fuck's sake, I'm not a high-school girl anymore !_

The realisation of what just happenned slowly made its way into both their brain.

"Shit."

"Fuck."

"I just kissed my best-friend's mom."

"I just kissed my son's best-friend."

They nervously laughed.

 _What should I do ? What do I do ?_

He was looking for something to say that would break the slowly growing awkward silence. He looked around took a few steps and hopped in the back of the van.

"So, um. Wanna do that again ?"

"Oh, fuck yes."

He had climbed there so she wouldn't have to lean that much. Their lips met again, more pasionnately this time. He was caressing her cheek again and their bodies were pressed against eachother. She tried to move into a more comfortable position but she stumbled and they slumped into the van, still kissing. She felt his left hand in her back pressing her against him and she wanted nothing more than to abandon herself to his embrace. Her right hand was against his chest and she could feel his muscles moving under his fur. He was more muscular than he seemed. Each of their movements pressed them more against eachother, their breath had synchronized.

But they slowly separated looking fondly at eachother.

"We- we should stop. Maybe."

"Yeah. It'd feel wrong to do a homerun before a proper date."

"You're quite the charmer Fin."

"Doin' mah best Vi."

He helped her up, she arranged back her dissheveled fur.

"So, um. Wot are ya doin' this evening ?"

"I think I'm going on a date with a charming fennec fox."

"Nice. I'll pick you up at your building around eight. It ain't gonna be too fancy, so maybe don't overdress."

"You know I don't have any fancy clothes."

"Doesn't seem that way to me when you wear them."

She felt herself blushing again. She turned around trying to hide her embarassment.

"I'll see you tonight then."

"Yeah, tonight, have a nice day Vi."

"Have a nice day Fin."

* * *

He had left the highway some kilometers ago but that hadn't made him slow down. The country roads around those parts were well maintained and as long as he wasn't driving way too recklessly, there were few risk to go off road. He saw a sign, Bunny Burrows was less than two kilometters away, and in the forty seconds it took him to actually get to the town's outskirt, the realisation slowly had dawned on him. He had come at Judy's hometown with no plans, no change of clothes, with the goal of declaring to her. He had broken most roads and cops regulations to come here, and when she would learn about it, she would be very pissed. But he also realised he didn't care.

He had arrived at bit after noon. He slowed down where zoogle maps told him to turn. It was a dirt road leading up a hill, with an arrow sign displaying "Hopps residence".

 _Must be here._

He drived up the hill and when he arrived on the other side, there was a large barn.

No it wasnt a barn. It looked more like a hangar. With windows and dependencies. It was the Hopp's residence. He knew the doe had a large family but until now, he hadn't realize how much it was true.

He pulled over in front of the house, in a place where he thought his car wouldn't be a nuisance. The fox looked around and thought that for a house this big with as much rabbits, it was really calm. Then he saw them. Dozens of rabbit ears, connected to rabbit heads, peering with curiosity through the windows at the vulpine. He put on his most casual and non-threatening mask and waved at them. Some of them disappeared and he saw the large doors openning. An unsure rabbit slowly approaching him. Behind him, several little heads were looking at him, hidden behind the doors.

"Um hello ? Are you lost ?"

"Depends. Am I at the Hopps' residence ?"

"Yes. And you are ?"

"Oh, where are my manners, the name's Nicholas Wilde. Nick for short."

"You're Nick ? Oh it's so nice to meet you, I'm Terry. Judy's uncle. She told us a lot about you but she didn't tell us you would come."

Nick saw the rabbit glance several time at the sport car, he probably hadn't seen such a fine model this close.

"I didn't know it myself-" He looked at his phone "four hours ago. An urgent matter, really. Do you know where she is ?"

"At the festival of course. I was about to go there myself to help, you can follow me."

The rabbit glanced again at the car, but went to an old machine that seemed she had had better days.

"Or you can ride with me and show me the directions."

"Oh, I wouldn't want to inconvenience you."

"You wouldn't be, really. Hop in." Nick's pun went undetected, the rabbit was too excited to step in the car.

The fox started the car, making a u-turn, skidding on purpose on the dirt rode, grinning at the gleeful squeele Judy's uncle couldn't help but let out.

"So which direction mister Hopps ?"

"Ho, it'ts Springer, I'm from Bonnie's side. To the right when you get out of the dirt road and then to the left at the roundabout. Then you only have to follow the siieeeeek."

Nick had skidded again when leaving the dirt-road. Driving like this was fun, but even more when he could frighten a passenger. Despite this, he decided to be more prudent, not wanting to risk anyone's life when he would get to the heart of the town.

"So why have you come here looking for Judy ?"

"Oh, it's quite important sir. I don't think I have the right to tell you."

"I understand. Police business."

Nick nodded.

...

They were nearing the festival. There were lots of pedestrian and Nick had slowed to a walking pace, looking for a parking space. People were looking at the sport car, having rarely seen some like it, and asking themsleves what it was doing here.

 _Screw this, if I'm going to do something reckless and stupid, I should be doing it to the end._

He took out the flashing light he had put down on the highway, and stuck it back up on the roof.

"Terry, it seems we have the priority."

He switched it on, the siren screamed. People quickly let them pass, Nick flashed his badge throught the window and the country cops even opened the barriers that kept the vehicles to get into the street. He stopped the car right in front of the Hopps' booth.

...

When she had heard the siren, Judy had immediately shot her head up, her hand reaching for a radio that wasn't here. She had looked around, in the direction of the loud approaching noise. When she saw the car stop before the booth, a lot of possible scenarios and possibilites played into her head. Did the ZPD sent for her ? Why didn't they call her ? Was it urgent ? Had something happened to Nick ? The window rolled down and she saw her friend's serious face looking at her. It was nice to see him, but the circumstances didn't seem to call for warm greetings.

"Judy, it's urgent, I need you to come with me right now."

She didn't even think twice, leaping over the counter, sliding on the hood of the car.

"Mom, Dad, gotta go, bye ! I'll call later !"

Terry had gotten out of the car and let her take his place.

"Hi Judy."

"Hi Terry."

"Thanks for the lift Nick."

"My pleasure Terry."

The does parents were frozen in place, when the car had disappered, they looked at eachother's and shrugged. It wasn't the first time their daughter had suprised them.  
He let the engine roar, so that the people would get out of his way quicker.

"What do you think this is about ?" Bonnie asked to Stu.

"I don't know honey but it must have been pretty important and urgent for a car to come pick our daughter up here."

"Yeah, and his fox friend was here. He came all this way to get her, that's dedication to the job."

* * *

 **Everything is looking up, no ? Finnick got a date with his lady, which is good. But maybe Nick's gone too far this time. Here's hoping it won't come back to bite him in the ass...**


	11. 11 In Love ?

**Hey guys ! ytodd, thanks for your kind reviews. First of and as always, the answers.**

 **: A couple more chapters ? Oh my sweet summer child... Though Part 1 is nearing its end (I'd say around four chapter but it could be more) ToaPMZ is FAR from over. Yeah Nick can have a certain level of focus, depending on how much the situation require. Declaring his love ? He's easily at Terminator level. About the Cliffhanger, to be honest it was supposed to be in the beggining of this next chapter, I'm not saying at what point, but I'm sure you will know when you will get to it.**

 **Fox in the hen house : I love to mistreat my character, but even I am not that sly... OR AM I ?**

 **Foxlover91 : Why, would it be Judy's style to berate mammals about rules and regulations ? Yes, yes it is. Yeah Fin and Vi are taking a step forward. I had a lot of fun writing this scene, but I had to hold myself down a bit or this pizza would've been WAY too cheesy.**

 **And now, for what you are all waiting for : The new chapter !**

* * *

"So what's happening ?" She had the police business attitude. He struggled to keep a straight face.

"Important stuff, I'd like to get out of here first."

"Right. I'll need to take my stuff from my parent's."

"I'd like to discuss the matter a bit before we go."

They left the festival, the cops opening the barriers again to let them through.

"Isn't it urgent ?"

"Quite so. Is there a quiet place we could talk ? Somewhere a bit private."

 _She's going to kill me. She's so going to kill me._

"Huh ? Sure, take to the left here. Then to the right in about five hundred metters there is an old abandonned store. We can go on the parking."

The place looked that nobody had come here in years. Tall grass had invaded the place, and a growing tree had collapsed a wall of the building. He got out of the car, she followed him and he faced her, paws in his pocket, his serious mask slowly disolving into the discreetly grinning one.

"Nick, what's happenning ?"

Nick chuckled. She frowned.

"Nick, this isn't ZPD's business is it ?"

"Nope."

"Where did you get the car ?"

"Mr Big."

"And the flashing light ?"

"Same."

She pinched her eyes.

"Nick, what the hell are you doing here ?"

"Came to see you."

"But why ? You could have waited five days. You could have called. You could have taken the train. Wait, When did you leave the city ?"

"About four hours ago."

"Four hou- how many traffic regulations did you break ?"

"About all of them."

If Judy didn't look so pissed, he wouldn't have been able to resist grinning from ear to ear.

"Nick, this better be important or I swear to god, I'll punch you so hard you'll fly back to Zootopia."

Nick took a deep breath. It was going to be hard, but after the ordeal with his mother, it seemed the task would be far from impossible.

"Okay, hear me out. You know how about today I was going to go see my mother. It all went well, don't worry. More so than I could think of. Anyway, before that Finnick had told me I shouldn't lose time and tell the people I knew how important they were to me, and my mom basically gave me the same speech when I talked to her about you. So there it is. I like you Judy."

Judy blinked several times, her face switching between pissed, embarrassed and something he could quite get.

Did he say what I think he said ? He can't have said what I think he said.

"Huh ? Tha- I mean, that's nice Nick. You're a good friend too, but you shouldn't have come all this way just to tell me this. I don't- I doesn't make any sense." He noticed her ears were twitching and her paws were lightly shaking. He took them in his and locked his gaze in the amethyst pool of her eyes. He lost himself for a few second before speaking again.

"No it's not- I like you as a friend too. But I also- I- I'm in love with you Judy." It didn't come out perfectly as he had envisionned, but he had said it. He could see the red slowly invading her face. Now he hoped she would return his feelings. No matter the fact that otherwise he would look like a complete fool. He had to admit his feeling toward her to himself and couldn't bear the idea of her not returning them.

Her thought process had come to a complete halt. All she could hear was a high pitch noise, that same one could hear after having been punched hard in the face. The fox's sentence slowly made its way to her brain, only then she could answer.

"So you're saying that you've borrowed a car from a mob boss," Anger in her voice was slowly rising. "violated too much road regulation to count," Anger still rising, Nick took a step back, "Abused your authority as a cop," She took a step forward, fist clenched. "and all this too tell me you love me." she had crossed her arms sternly.

"That's what I did." The fox tried to put on a brave front, but his tail was twitching nervously. This was not going well at all.

"You dumb fox." Was it going to shit ? He was certain he could see red creep to her cheek. And it didn't really looked like anger.  
"I'm in love with you too." She almost shouted in an ecstatic tone, jumping at his neck, hugging him tightly. Nick wasn't ready and he fell down, the bunny cuddlingly burrowing her face in his chest.

 _Happinness feel's like bunny hugs. Should've known._

He returned her embrace, nuzzling and kissing her between the ears. She looked up and gave him a deep kiss. If happinness was bunny hugs, bunny kisses were a battering ram in the heaven's door.

She was lying on his chest, looking at the sky, sometimes glancing at him above her head as to make sure he was really here. Each time she met his eyes, watching her fondly.

"You had me worried for a second there." He said.

"That was a hustle sweetheart."

"I have some bad news though." He tried to say in a serious tone, but couldn't.

"What is it Nick ?" She hadn't bought it but humoured him anyway.

"You're in love with a fox."

"How am I gonna tell my parents !"She sayed, mimicking a panicked expression. They both laughed. They loved eachother. Nothing was more important to them at this instant.

He chuckled, tenderly caressing her head. She heard his stomach gurgle. The fox had eaten a bit of Mancha's snacks, but he didn't really eat consistent since breakfast. The doe rolled over and stood up.

"Seems my predator is famished. Bad idea for a poor bunny to stand around a hungry fox."

"Yep, best way to get eaten."

"By you, I wouldn't really mind." She had blurted those words without thinking. She instantly pulled her eyes on her face with her paws, trying really hard to disappear.

"Carrots, did you just say what I think you just said ?"

"I didn't say anything." She answered in a meek voice. Even with her ears hiding her fce, he could see how red she was.

"If that's what you want, I can eat you right now." he joked with his most predatory smile.

"Eeeep" She squeeled, getting away form him as he was slowly approaching her. She stopped after a few step and he hugged her from behind, nibbling at her neck.

"As I thought, tastes like embarassed wabbit." She shivvered.

 _Using fang, maybe not a good idea with bunnies !_

"Are you alright carrots ?"

"I'm so embarassed, why did I say that ?"

"I have several theories, but there is none you'd like."

She finally calmed down and pulled away from him. "So we were talking about getting you something to eat." Nick's shit-eating grin was instantly back. "Don't you dare say a word Nick. You're still on probation for your driving antics." he lifted his paws trying to muster his most innocent mask, but the mischievous smile still appeared underneath.

"There is a lot to eat at the festival, not only carrots. I'm sure we can find something for you. Gideon makes the best blueberry pies around." New gurggle sound.

"Blueberrie pie it is." She suddenly punched him hard on the shoulder.

"Ow, Judy, what was that for ?"

"Oh I don't know, the trafic regulations ? You using you badge to get into the festival with a car ? You using our job to get me to come with you here ? Pick a favorite."

"Okay, fine, maybe I deserved that one."

She hopped and kissed him on the cheek.

"And that's for driving four hours in a spur of the moment just tot tell me you love me."

...

They had parked the car near the center of the town. As they were about to get out of the car, Judy spoke.

"But really, how am I gonna tell my parents ?"

"You just, uhm, tell them ?"

"Nick, don't play dumb for five minutes. They are bunnies. Farmer bunnies. You know how biased I was ? From who do you think that came from ? It took them time to understand that there could be fox police officers, and even more to stop saying that I should ask for a more trustworthy partner, even if you were the one that helped me solve the Bellwether case." She sighed "Now, I'm dating you. I mean, we're dating right ?"

The fox nodded, barely keeping his smile to reach his ears.

"Cross-species relationships are frowned upon and pred-prey even more so. I don't want them to be disrespectful to you, to us, even if chances are they will be..."

"We can hide it for now, I don't mind."

"What ?"  
His serious face was back up, he looked her in the eyes. "Listen Judy. I know people don't like foxes, and I'm not stupid enough to think your parents will instantly like me. Plus it would be pretty dumb to just go around the festival holding paws. Let's hide it for a bit, test the water, see if they can appreciate me before they learn we're together. You'll tell them when the time is right. As long as we're together, I can take it."

She leaned forward and kissed him on the snout.

"Why did we wait for so long ?"

"Because I'm a dumb fox and you're a dumb bunny. Let's get out now, I'm hungry and you promised me blueberry pie."

...

Just as they exited the car, Nick smelled something. He sniffled again. Now that they were out of the car, his suspicions seemed to be true.

"Carrots ?"

"Yes ?"

"Did you scent-mark me ?"

"What ? What are you saying ?"

"In the car it was hard to tell since your smell was very present in closed space, but now, in the open air, I'm pretty sure. You have marked me. When you were nuzzling my chest."

She hid her mouth with paws, eyes wide open with surprise and embarassment.

"I'm so sorry, I was so happy, I didn't know what I was doing."

He approached and leaned toward her, sniffling.

"No problem, I have marked you too, just between the ears."

"What ?"

"Yep, It's subtle though, so as long as you don't hug someone, they shouldn't notice."

...

The festival was an avalanche of colors, smell and noises. From averywhere people were shouting, tryin to sell their product, propose activities. Food was being cooked, kids were running around, laughing and screaming. Even at the most busy hours, Zootopia never seemed that alive. In the city, people were busy, working, looking at their phone screen. Here people talked, cheered, laughed. Nick had never been to a place like this and it brought a genuine smile to his face. In this kind of moment he knew how much Judy had changed his life. Being here, and truly being enjoying it, his old self would never have been able to.

"This way Nick, you must meet my parents !"

"This soon ?"

"Don't start. They'll be happy to meet you."

They made their war to the Hopps' booth, going through the back.

"Hey, mom, dad !"

"Wha- Judy ? We thought you were going back to Zootopia." Said Bonnie.

"Yeah, what was that all about ? Is everything alright ?" asked Stu.

"Uhm-"

"It's all a bit silly. There was some urgent matter, that of which we can't reveal any details to the public, but it was resolved while I was on the road. And I didn't learn about this up until your daughter was in the car." Nick's expression was professionnal, not a hint of joke. The doe was always impressed, and slightly annoyed, at how he could fabricate a lie this quick and sell it to anyone. "Sorry I thought Judy had been told of my arrival. Terry, your brother as I understand it m'am Hopps, was kind enough to direct me here. The ZPD's communication is not always what it should be. I apologize for the inconvenience."  
Judy's parents were a bit taken aback, but soon they were back to their cheerful selves.

"Oh, it's no problem really." began Bonnie "Oh where are my manners, my name is Bonnie, you must be Nicholas."

He offered his paw.

"Nick, for short."  
"Don't be silly, if you're a friend of Judy, you're a friend of ours. No handshake, we're hugging." Nick hid a startled expression, afraid she would smell her daughter's scent on him.

"The name's Stu, thanks for having our daughter's back in the big city." The male bunny's hug was quicker and more stiff.

"The pleasure's mine. She's my partner and best friend."

"Yes she talks a lot about you."

"I'm sure she does." discreet sly grin.

"So Nick, Are you staying for a bit ?"

"I don't see why not, I was supposed to be on vacation on the first place." his stomach gurggled again. "I really don't mean to be rude but I didn't eat, would you please direct me to the nearest blueberry pie ? Judy assured me some Gideon made the best around here."

"The booth right next to ours. Go through the back with Judy, she'll introduce you and you'll have a discount."

"Thanks a lot. See you later !"

...

They went around the back to the next booth and arrived behind Gideon and Jessica, busy talking to their clients. They respectfully waited for them to be done before greeting them.

"Hi Gideon, Hi Jessica!"

"Hi Judy !" They answered, turning around "Oh, who's your friend ? Is it Nick ? I'm Gideon" asked Gideon, shaking his hand.

"Carrots, how come everyone seems to know me here, did you show my photo to everyone here ?"

"I'm Jessica, and no" answered Jessica, shaking Nick's hand in turn "She simply talks a lot about you. Plus she left with you less than an hour ago, Terry told us. Why are you back by the way ?"

"A matter that resolved itself while he was on the road. Since he was on vacation in the first place, I suppose he will spend some time with us."

"For now, I'd simply like to spend times with those blueberry pies over here. I made no pause getting here from Zootopia and I'm famished."

"Oh, of course, help yourself !" said Gideon "I'll make you the family discount since you're Judy's friend"

Nick paid, took out his pocket knife and carved a slice. Saying the pie was delicious was an understatement. Nick had a sweet tooth for blueberries in the first place but this pie was the best he had ever eaten.

"Oh crap, you werent' lying those are the best pie I've ever eaten. Anyone else want a slice ?"

"I'll have one !" Jessica approached him with a bouncy steps. She took the slice and opened her mouth, but it was to talk rather than eat.

 _Oh no._

Judy pinched her eyes, ready to put a stop to the unstoppable wave of question that was about to come out.

"So Nick, how's the big city ? How is it for someone that grew there to come in a small town like this ? Is it strange to see so much rabbit at the same time ?"  
Judy was about to intervene but Nick nodded at her, as to say to her that he was okay with it. She turned to Gideon who was back to selling his pies and bakeries and took Jessica's place.

"You don't have to, Judy."

"Your help is focused on my partner, I feel a bit guilty. Don't worry, if I was't here, I would be doing the same for my parents."

People were coming buying and leaving, sometimes asking Judy how she was doing in Zootopia. Occasionnaly she glanced at Gideon. He was so different from what she had known growing up. He was smiling, genuinly smiling, happy to talk to other peoples, greeting them as they came, a kind comment for everyone. It put a bit of courage in her heart. If Gideon had been able to change this much, surely her parents wouldn't be that much trouble.

"Judy, I meant to ask. Why do you smell so much of Nick ?"

 _What ? Oh my god, the mark. Fox and their high smell sense._

"Uh, I was driving on the way back here, I suppose a bit of Nick's scent rubbed on me since he had driven this car for four hours straight."

"Oh. Okay."

The explication seemed to satisfy him.

...

"You know Judy, when I met you, I thought you were way too energetic, but your cousin... Textbook definition of bouncing hyperactive bunny."

They were helping Judy's parents moving the unsold product to the truck. The festivites had ended for the day and the sun was slowly coming down at the horizon.

"She's always been like this. In standard mammal definitions, most rabbits are considered hyperactive, but she is even by bunny standards. You can tell her if she gets on your nerves, she gets it."

"Oh she doesn't, besides I got to ask her a ton of question about you."

"Like what ?" Judy was suddenly a bit wary. "What did her cousin tell to him ?

"Something about a play, 'blood, blood, blood... and death' she showed me the pictures. You were already quite the actress. No wonder you could fool Bellwether."

Judy felt warm spreading on her face. Nick didn't need to glance at her too see in what state she was.

"Oh, and she also showed me a photo of you little, in your pretty little police uniform." The smirk was as mischievous as ever. "I couldn't believe you could actually be cuter than you are now."

She dropped the crate. The embarassement was mixed with anger.

"You didn't just say that !"

"I guess I di-id !" He sang, beginning to flee, still holding his own crate. It slowed him down and she quickly caught up, heavily punching his shoulder.

"Ow. Police brutality, I'm filing a complaint !"

"Try that and I file one for public harassment !"

"It's not harassment if it's true !" He playfully taunted. The second punch was lighter. As she was about to jump on him and kiss him, Bonnie's joking voice came from behind them.

"Kids, when you'll be finished playing, maybe you can help us finish to pack up."

 _Oops, close one._

...

They were all sitting around the table. Well not all, around thirty bunnies were sharing a large table in the Hopps' house living room. The chatter was pleasant. Nick as an only child was impressed at how Bonnie and Stu could handle all those children at once, even if most of them were grown enough to not need them.

"So Carrots, you have 275 siblings ?"

"Yup, most of them live here."

"You didn't lie, you bunnies are good at multypliying."

"You know, it's more of an extended family that just my parent's children. Uncle Terry lives here too with his, and there must be another dozen relatives living in our home with their family."

"Oh, I thought..."

"Yes, like most people. It's like this with country bunnies, we burrow together as families. There are at least five other houses likes this around Bunny Burrow, more or less related to each other." Said Bonnie.

"And the sign at Bunny-Burrows entrance ?"

"A joke, the numbers can't move up after the thousands." answered Stu.

"You guys are really confortable with your stereotypes."

"Beside the C-word, yes." answered Judy.

The meal ended with no notable event. Judy's parents gave him a towel as he needed one, wishing to take a shower after this emotionally draining day. And the four hour drive. Judy took one too, right after him to try to get rid of his scent. It was conforting but she didn't want to give away how close they now were.

* * *

 **Are they together now ? It was so improbable... Who, truely who would have seen it coming ?**

 **Certainly not me, and I'm the writer... :3**


	12. 12 Sweet Evenings

**Reviews answers ? Reviews answers.**

 **Fox in the hen house : I am not sorry to say Part 1 is, and will stay pretty classic by fanfiction standard. Of course, I have still a few things up my sleeve. Keep you on your toes, what would be the point otherwise ?**

 **Foxlover91 : It was all a hustle, a gamble on her returning his feelings and not tearing him a new one. The place she punched him will have a bruise though. How can you think their relationshop won't stay hidden ? They are so discreet and prudent ! Don't believe me ? See for yourself in the next chapter.**

 **And now, the new chapter. Hope you will like it :)**

* * *

The night was calm, despite the number of mammals that were actualliy living in the house. The city nights were so much louder, there were neon light flashing all the time, activity in the street. So much that the city seemed to never really sleep. And neither could Judy right now. She turned and turned under the sheet but it was escaping her.

 _I need to drink something._

She silently got out of her room and went down the stairs. When she was little, the silent corridors had scared her, although she would never have admitted it. Now, they were soothing, familiar. She could navigate them eyes closed.

In the kitchen she took out the carrot-juice bottle from the fridge and served herself a glass. She then went back up the stairs sipping it. As she was about to get to her room she saw some light under the guest's door, three room from hers.  
Nick can't sleep either.

She decided to knock, to see how he was doing.

"Yes ?" came the muffled fox's voice.

Judy entered the room. It was dim-lit by the night-stand lamp. Nick didn't really need it to see in the dark but he had his phone in his paw. Chances were he didn't want to hurt his eyes while looking at the screen. He looked a bit comical in the bunny sized twin bed. The doe closed the door behind her.

"You can't sleep either can you ?" he half-asked, his voice down as to not wake anyone up.

"I lost the habit of sleeping with so little noise around." her voice was quiet too.

"Yes I understand, it's strange to me too. Though it's not really the only reason I can't sleep."

Judy approached Nick's bed and sat on the side, he scooted a bit on the side to leave room for her.

"What's the other reason ?" She asked.

He extended his paw and caressed her cheek.

"Guess."

"You were thinking about me ?" She asked with a smile.

"You're on the right path." He answered, leaning forward to kiss her.

She was now wearing a naughty smile as she closed her eyes. "And you want too have se-"

He and his paw jumped back in an instant.

"What ?" He had almost raised his voice. "No. I mean yes, but no. I'm not- I want to take this slow."

She looked at him with a strange expression.

"Is that okay with you ?" he asked.

"Yes ! Of course. Sorry, it was- Oh, this is so embarrassing." She had taken her face in her paws. "I always forget that other mammals are different from bunnies."

Nick's mieschievous grin was slowly growing on his face.

"You want to-"

"No ! I mean yes, not yet... Maybe ?" She was still blushing, her voice had sped up, as it did when she was stressed. "Okay, we'll have to talk about sex sometime so we might as well do it now."

"Do what now ?" Nick was still grinning.

"Nick, this is important."

"Alright." He sat legs crossed and turned to face her, putting his paws on his thighs. "What specifically should we talk about ?"

She sighed and scratched her head.

"You know how us bunnies have this reputation with multiplying and having lots of sex ?"

"I'm sure I heard about it before, yes." The grin was still here, but discreet.

"Well it's... Mostly true. It's not a very big deal to us. That doesn't mean were aren't faithful, on the contrary, but it's not unusual for new couples to- uhm- do the deed the first, second or third day they're actually dating."

Nick said nothing, taking in what she had just said.

"Most of us, females and males take some kind of hormonal supressents. Some of us twice the dosage when we're in- Uh- in heat." Her voice was so low that Nick had trouble hearing her. He struggled to keep his serious face, the reality was even funnier than his suspicions.

"Let me get this straight. You bunnies have to suppress your, uhm, hormones, or else you'd all be bouncing sex addicts ?"

 _Keep the serious face. Keep it a bit more._

She punched him in the shoulder.

"Not funny. We are all perfectly functionning mammals, and we would still be without the pills ! We simply would have to make more, uhm, pauses during work."

This was too much for him. He broke down into a fit of muffled laughter as he shoved his own face into a pillow. He slowly calmed down and faced the doe again. She was looking at the mattress, and he could see her face all red under her fur.

"Are you done ?" Her tone was half-angry, half-mortified.

"Sorry Carrots. I shouldn't laugh. Thanks for explaining all that to me."

There was a bit of an awkward silence before Judy spoke again.

"I don't know much about other species. What they do, how soon they do it. I didn't have a real reason to ask myself until now either."

"Well, for vulpines, it's different, pretty much the opposite actually."

"How so ?" She looked genuinely interested.

"There is a saying that we foxes mate for life and it's mostly true. Generaly when a fox mates, or to put it bluntly, has sex, it's a big deal. Litteraly. We only do it with the one we're sure will be the one. It changes us, we become very protective of one another, and our bond is strong. Like crazy strong. Only some life-changing event or a really long time can alter it. There are of course some cases of total incompatibility where the couple can't stand eachother. It mostly happens when the mating was too rushed. So yeah, we're all about taking it slow."

Judy's face was suddenly thoughtful, but he could discern a hint of smile behind the slowly fading grave expression.

"You mean" She began, unable to suppress a giggle "that you never actually had sex ? You, slick Nick, you never... ?"

Nick sighed, as annoyed as he was amused.

"Well 'Ive had some experiences. We foxes can still fool around a bit. As long as there is no- uhm- penetration." It was Nick's turn to be embarassed but Judy was diplomat enough to not rub it in his face. "I mean, I've had a couple girlfriends. Never anything serious. And you ?"

At the question, Judy's ears dropped.

"Maybe I've had a couple of boyfriend." her voice had turn to meek.

"Your mouth say couple but your face says dozen."

"Not that much ! But you know, high-school was stressful, I was young and stupid, stuff happenned."

"So, how many ?" The mischievous grin was more present than ever.

"None of your business" The fox kept staring at her mischievously. "Five" Nick was about to say something but she raised her paw to shut him up "I didn't sleep with all of them. There was never anything really serious either. And it's all that you'll learn on the matter."

"Still, I have a hard time imagining your parents being okay with you doing this in high-school. Or maybe bunny parents are more permissive."

"Trust me they aren't. I had to be discreet. Dad almost caught Devon in my room. He had entered fork in hand, because he had heard his poor guy had just had the time to take his clothes and jump through the window."

They both chuckled.

...

"Okay, so sex matter's taken care of. Do we agree that we need to take it slow ?"

"Yes. Beside, you're a fox, I'm a bunny. I don't see myself running head down into this."

"Neither do I."  
They remained like this a bit, facing eachother. Nick slowly raised his paw and caressed her cheek again. She leaned into it cupping his paw with her own and closing her eyes, losing herself in the contact. She felt him kiss her. She kissed him back and gently pushed him on his back, crawling toward him. They stayed like this a long time, lying on the bed, kissing and nuzzling eachother. Nick was spooning her, she felt protected his arms wrapped around her, like in a furry, warm and cuddly coccoon.

"So the real reason you couldn't sleep was ?"

"I couldn't keep my mind off you" He kissed her between the ears "It went all so fast, I told you I loved you, we kissed and then we were back at the festival with hardly time to see eachother alone."

"Yeah, I couldn't stop thinking of you either. I'm glad you came." She burrowed herself in his chest and he tightened his arms around her. It was so perfect, like he had been made just so they could fit like this.

"Still, I cant stop thinking. You came to see your mother this morning and immediately after you came here. How long did you stay with her ?"

"A bit more than two hours."

"What ? You wait for twenty years to go see her and that's all the time you spent with her ?" She had pulled away and was looking up at him with a puzzled expression.

"Yeah, I know how it looks. It went well though, she actually encouraged me to come here and declare, saying that I shouldn't wait for things to turn sour. I don't know what I did to deserve her. I'll spend the last two days of vacation with her to make up for it."

She got back into the spooning position.

"Finnick was right, you Wildes are a looney bunch with a twisted sense of logic."

He chuckled at that and she felt his chest move in her back. From one hand, Nick pulled the sheet on them. A part of Judy was telling her that it was a bad idea to sleep here but she and him quickly fell into a blissfull and deep slumber.

* * *

He was wearing his usual pair of cargo, and a clean white shirt that he had had to dry with a hair dryer. He was also wearing a tie, the same that he hade taken from Nick's old stuff. He had taken time to clean his van, in and out and had made a reservation in a restaurant. Now he he had been waiting at the corner of Vivienne's street for at least fifteen minutes because he had arrived twenty five too soon but didn't want to park his van in front of her building for too long.

 _We kissed, she likes you, no reason to stress out... It's my first real date in five years, maybe some reasons to stress out._

He decided it was time for him to move and go wait for her in front of the building. He started the van, turned left rode fifty metters and parked it again.

 _I'm here. Should I call her ? No, It's not quite eight._

He got out of the van and leaned against a street lamp. He took out his phone and began browsing the web to pass time. He didn't use internet much but he had taken a habit of visiting art websites. He really liked street art it reminded him of his youth. He even did some graffity himself, almost got arrested a few times because of it.

He was lost in his thoughts and didn't see that Vivienne had gotten out of the building, she was standing in front of him a few meters away.

"Good evening Finnick"

Immediately, his head snapped up, looking at the Vixen. She was wearing a simple light-green dress, with a warm but elegant coat over it. In the dim-litten street, with the contrast of the streetlight, he couldn't take a good look. He approached trying to look confident.

"Good evening Vivienne."

She leaned and they kissed quickly. He accompanied her to the van, hopped in and pulled out.

"Nice outfit" she said.

"Uh, 's just a shirt wid' tie. I wanted to make good a impression. The dress looks nice."

"Thanks. Where are we going ?"

"The Fishmarket, a restaurant in Rainforest."

The conversation had been a bit awkward and the silence that followed it was too. They were staring at the road, both looking for what to say. As much as they had waited before confessing to each other, they both feeled they had completely rushed into it.

Finnick easily found a parking spot and they walked to the restaurant. Vivienne didn't really like this part of the city, the dampness of the Rainforest ditrict made her fur impossible to brush when she stayed too long. Luckily, as they entered the restaurant, she found it had a sas and dryer air on the inside. She walked a few steps and looked around. It was medium sized joint, the colors were predominantly blue, with a fish-themed decoration. She found it kitch but in a good and warm way. Finnick, who had held the door open for her, watched her enter as she got out of her coat. He could know clearly see her in the faintly blue light of the place. Her dress was simple but elegant, underlining her lean shape. Her make-up was nice and discreet, only highlighting her natural beauty. Despite the years, than the few strands of grey in her fur, he found her gorgeous.

 _Don't stare, don't stare !_

But he stared and she noticed, giving him a slight wink and a gentle smile.

A waiter came and sat them to a table, giving them the menu.

"It's a nice place" she said "you chose well"

"Thanks, reviews were good and all. I don't know lotsa nice places. Hope the food's good."

He chose a simple Salmon Filet with rice on the side and she a shrimp salad. They let the waiter decide which wine would fit with their meal since none of them knew what would be best with what they had chosen.

As they were waiting for their order, Finnick decided to try to break the lingering silence that installed itself between them.

"So, how was your life those last few days ?"

"Not a lot happenned until this morning. And I'm not talking about us kissing. Nick came to my flat."

"No shit ? What did you do ?"

"I- I slapped him."

"Wot ?"

"And then I hugged him. You- I must thank you. He said that if he came it was because of those things you said to him, that he not should wait to be with the people he loved."

"Oh. He talked to ya 'bout that."

"Yes, I know for the drinking, the hangover. The heartfelt speech." She had a slight grin, but not a mocking one.

"I ain't real proud. I took our fight pretty hard. Should've understood you."

"How ? It's not as if I had been that clear with you. I was a mess. You know it was to confess to you that I had invited you to the diner ?"

"It's kinda clear now, yeah. I understand how giving ya the bag would piss you off."

"If anything, I was mostly pissed at myself because I couldn't bring myself to tell you what I wanted. I took it out on you and I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too, I shouldn't have lost my temper."

"You don't have t-"

"No, I have to. I was frustrated. I was scared that you didn't return my feeling. We're two stupid foxes, both os us had to apologize." He had an embarassed grin, he wasn't used to say sorry. It's not something street life had taught him to do.

The waiter brought the plate and the wine, opening the bottle for them. Finnick served them both.

...

"So Nick came ta see ya dis morning ? How come you came to see me ? I'd have thought you'd spend the day together."

"I thought we would too. But something important came up and he had to live. We had time to talk though."

"What didja talk about ?"

"He told me about the nighthowler case. I knew he was involved but there are a few things that the press had left out. Or didn't know. Like the involvment of mister Big or how much he had risked to get through it."

"Yeah, he told me too. If I'd known what would've happenned, I'd've dragged him out."

"Don't kid yourself. He's a Wilde, you don't drag one of us out of anything."

The fennec chuckled. "That's true, y'all a so pig headed."

"If anything, you would've ended up caught into the mess. I know you well enough to now that you wouldn't have let him take all the risks."

"Ya think I'm the kind of mammal to risk my pelt for others ?"

"No, only for the people you love."

Finnick smirked. She knew him well. He took his glass and raised it.

"To the people we love."

"To the people we love."

They sipped the wine. And it was good.

...

Finnick was driving, the dinner had gone well and now he was taking Vivienne home.

"I went to see my husband too."

"Huh ?" at that, Finnick had turned the wheel slightly but easily took back control of the vehicle.

"His grave, I had to tell him that I was moving on. I never could before. With Nick coming back, I think it gave me the strength."

"Even then, it must've not been easy."

"You know, I gave a speech similar to yours to to Nick, that's the reason he left so quickly."

"What do you mean ?"

"He's gone to declare to his bunny friend, Judy. That's why he left this quick."

"No shit ? He had it bad for her ! You're okay with that ?" Finnick was grinning, the thought made him more happy than he would've thought.

"Am I okay ? With what ? Him leaving that suddenly to apply my advice ? Fuck yeah ! A kit should always listen to his mom. Or him dating a prey ? That, I don't know. It's alien to me, I don't really see how it could work. But from what I understand, they both have already exceeded any expectation anyone could have toward fox and bunny species. If anyone can make this work, it's them."

"You're right about that. They're crazy, and the right kind."

"He leaving that quickly, I think that's really what gave me the courage to come and see you. If he could take this decision, not knowing how it would go, I couldn't keep my feelings to myself even though I knew how you felt."

...

Finnick pulled over in front of Vivienne's building, hopping out and accompanying her to the door.

"I hope you had a nice evening." he said.

She looked at her watch.

"I'm still having a nice evening. Do you want to come up for a last drink ?"

Finnick had to blink a few times.

"I- I don't want to intrude."

"You're not."

She looked at him, calmly waiting for an answer.

"I guess a last drink can't do no harm."

They entered the building, and took the stairs.

The vixen was fiddling with her keys in her pocket.

 _Are you really doing that big girl ?_

Behind her, the fennec fox was trying real hard to not lift his gaze as the waggling taill acted like a magnet for his eyes, keeping them on the steps.

 _You're here for a last drink, Finnick, nothing more._

* * *

 **Yes, NOTHING MORE.**

 **Bad, bad foxes.**


	13. 13 Good Night, Good Morning

_**Disclaimer : I totally shitfaced myself yesterday night, it's morning while I'm writing this and I'm hungover. I apologize for the typos that I could have missed.**_

 **Hello guys, today is a good day. Today is a big day. Part 01 is now twice as long as Part 00. Woohoo !**

 **I now I shouldn't say it, but I'm proud of myself. I'd also like to thank all my readers, my followers and reviewers. You guys make me want to write even more. I hope my style isn't getting too boring.**

 **When I began this fanfiction, it was only because I wanted to write a few fluffy scenes between mammals. It completely backfired and now I'm spending most of my free time on it. And I'm unemployed. I'll let you do the math :)**

 **To put it simply, this little project is turning into something way bigger than initially planned. Because, it wasn't planned at all.**

 **I'd like to thank _Fox in the hen house_ , _Foxlover91_ and _Saforite154_ for their reviews. I'm sorry I won't answer them this time. I don't have anything interesting to say, well not without spoiling this next chapter, and my brain is still not completely operational.**

 **So without further ado :**

* * *

They entered the flat and the vixen hanged her coat. Finnick wandered in the modest living room.

"That's quite a nice place you have there."

"Not really, but it's enough for me. It can get really cold in winter."

"I live in a van."

They shared a chuckle.

"I hope you like whiskey, I don't have anything else."

"S'alright with me."

She poured them a pair of glasses and they sat on the couch. They silently sipped it.

...

"You remember the first time we met ?"

"You mean, the time you punched me in the face and threaten to break my legs if I didn't give you back your pup ?"

"Yep that time." They both laughed. It hadn't been a pleasant start for their friendship but none of them resented each other because of the event.

"Yeah, John stopped you. He believed me immediately, I don't know why."

"He was always more impulsive than me, but he could read people so well. He-"

She went quiet, looking at her glass with an embarassed look.

"I'm sorry."

"Why ?"

"We're on a date, having a drink and I'm talking about my dead husband. It's not really the best thing to do with a boyfriend."

 _Boyfriend. Okay, it's official, I'm a highschool girl._

"If it can make ya comfortable, I can talk 'bout the girls I dated, to even the awkward field." He said, trying to cheer her up.

"Something specific in mind ?" She was smiling again. She found the idea funny.

"There is not anything really remarkable to tell. Except that time I dated a skunk."

"You dated a skunk ?" She poured them another glass. "This, I must know." She was grinning, an interested look on her face.

"Yeah, some four years ago. Didn't end well. She wanted commitment, and I lived in a van. For me it wasn't anything serious, just a couple doing a bit more than what regular friends do. I tried to explain that I didn't think it would work out on the long run, she insisted we try and move in together."

"What did you do ?" Vivienne had drunk half her glass during the story.

"I was already in love wid' you at the time, so what do you think ? I dumped her ass." he took another sip. "Let me tell ya, you don't wanna piss off a skunk."

The vixen snickered, trying to keep the laugh for bursting out.

"You can laugh. Took me a week and a dozen shower to take the stench off my fur. Worst hustling week I ever had."

The laugh burst. The fennec fox sipped his glass with a slight grin. He wanted to divert the conversation to a more cheery matter. If it was at his expense, he was okay with it.

"Thanks Fin" She wiped a tear of laughter.

"No problem."

"I mean, thanks for everything. I know why you told me this story."

He sipped again, not knowing what to answer.

"After- Well, you know... You were always here for me." She continued "I was always waiting your visits. You listened to me and tried to cheer me up. It kept me going and- "

She leaned forward and kissed him.

"No problem, I- I simply wanted to be here for ya. Still do."

He kissed her this time.

"I love you Vivienne." He felt a warmth envelopping him, he couldn't take his eyes off her.

"I love you Finnick." She cast aside all barriers, all things that have held her back all those years.

They both leaned, lips locking in passion. Once again he was pressing her against himself, his hand caressing her face and her shoulder. Their lips interlocked refusing to part, their minds so lost, they couldn't hear the slight growls of craving their throats gave.  
Her hands explored his collar, untying the tie, and slowly opening each button of his shirt. Without thinking, he had began unzipping her dress in her back. As they were both half-naked, the realisation of what they were doing settled itslef in their brain.

They pulled appart looking at eachother.

"You okay Vi ?"

"Fuck yeah !"

Half a second later, their were in her room, on the bed, resuming what they were doing on the couch. The cargo pants were sent flying across the room, and he helped her out of the dress. They felt the passion burning within themselves, their hands carressing, exploring every secrets their body held, their mouths locking in and out.

All was left were their underwear, quickly discarded. He held her against him, as he let his paw under her hips. The moan she gave sent spikes of primal desire in his mind.

"Fin ?"

"Yes ?"

"I want it. I want you !"

What she had just said, her gaze locked into his, broke down every last doubt they both had.  
They fully gave themselves to eachother, abandonning the last ounces of rational thinking that lingered in the fringes of their minds.  
They loved eachother and at that moment it was the only thing that mattered.

* * *

The sun was brushing his face. He blinked several time and pulled at the sheet, putting it on his face to shield his eyes from the light. There was warm fur against his, bringing him comfort. Like an automatism, he nuzzled the person lying in his arms, a pair of long ears moving and brushing his face. Slowly, slumber left his mind and he could remember where he was.

"Morning carrots."

"Hhhm, dont wanna work today."

"You're on vacation, you don't have to work."

"But festival-"

He squeezed her against his chest and she let escape a sigh of satisfaction.

"You can't go, you've been catpured by a devious fox."

"Yes, I can never get up now."

"Never."

They stayed like this for a bit, the slumber hovering above them, leaving them in a satisfying half-asleep mode.

Suddenly, a knock on Nick's door was heard. It immediately woke them up like a cold shower.

"Nick ? Are you taking your breakfast with us ?" It was Jessica's voice

"Yes" he answered "I'm dressing up, don't come in."

Nick and Judy looked at the door with a frighten look.

"Oh, and don't wake Judy !" he added "She likes to sleep until late when she's not working." This was a complete lie but the doe's cousin seemed to buy it.

They heard the steps slowly going away in the hallway. They looked at eachother, worried expressions on their faces.

"You've got to get back to your room."

"Yep. But I'm in my underwear, and I don't think the sleep-walk excuse will take."

"I'll go take a look outside, your room is near, you'll just have to make a run for it."

He quickly dressed, opening his door, looked to the right and to the left. No-one was in sight.

"Wait for me, I'm taking breakfast with you."

"Okay. The way is sure, go, go, go."

Judy launched herself into the hallway. In a matter of second, her door had opened and closed. No one had seen her. A few second later, as Nick was waiting in front of her door, she got out wearing a pair of pants and a t-shirt.

"If I'm to stay here a couple days more, I'll have to buy a pair of underwear and shirt." Said Nick.

"We can go buy some after breakfast if you want."

They walked to the kitchen where a dozen bunny were already eating, Bonnie and Jessica were making pancakes, Stu was serving the kids.

"Hey sleepy heads, It's past 8 already."

"Jude the dude, Slick Nick, how are you doing this morning ?" Welcomed them Judy's father.

"No honest mammal should wake before 10 on vacation." Answered Nick with his eternal smirk.

They made their way to the table and sat down. Quickly, Stu served them hot cocoa and some pancakes.

"Dad, why are you staring at Nick ?"

"Oh, sorry. I was just wondering how old he was."

"Thirty-three, why do you want to know ?"

"Well, there are grey strands in your fur, you looked young but sometime looks can be deceiving."

Nick kept the confident smile, easily hiding his worry. At his side, Judy choked on her cocoa.

"Hey, you alright Judy ?" He approached her with a rag, wiping the table. He looked at her, approached his paw and took something off her head. "Oh, red strand must've come from you Nick. Another, you have quite a few on yo-"

He had gone silent, and quickly the whole room was voided of any chattering noise. He took a stumbling couple of steps back, as he had been punched.

Judy and Nick look at everyone present, time had seemed to stop, all bunnies staring at them. A noise of tinkling metal was heard as Bonnie had let go of a spoon.

 _Shit._

 _Crap._

"What did you do to my daughter ?" The male bunny's voice was a whisper.

"Nothing sir, simply talked a bit before heading down, hugged, that's all. Some hair must have come off of eachothers and-" It was his worst lie yet. There were way to much red fur on her to have simply come from a hug, even a blind mammal could see it.

Stu's paws had begun shaking, anger growing in his eyes.

"What did you do to my daughter ?" His voice was louder, his nose was twitching.

 _Okay, he is entering panic mode, time to calm him down._

Judy got up, went straight to his father and hugged him patting his back.

"He did nothing, everything's alright, breathe. Nick did nothing."

"Must've done something, you smell more fox than rabbit." He was whispering again. Judy's face immediately heated up. Her father leaned against the table, slowly slumping. Judy took a chair and helped him sit.

"I knew it would happen, my daughter manipulated by a devious fo-"

"STU !" It was Bonnie's voice. "You can't call foxes devious. Gid is a fox too and he's not devious."

"I was talking about this one specifically." answered the male bunny pointing a Nick.

"DAD !" Judy shouted. "Don't you call my boyfriend devious."

"But what if your boyfriend likes being called devious ?" Interrupted Nick in a joking tone.

"Not helping !"

Bonnie took out a bottle of carrot vodka and served her husband and herself.

"Mom !"

"Don't 'mom' me, yound lady. I need something more stiff than cocoa and so does your father. Kids, take your plates and go eat in the leaving room, grown-ups need to talk."

All the youngling left the kitchen chattering between themselves. Jessica didn't move, she was looking at the new couple with a blank expression.

Judy's parents downed half their glasses.

"Since when are you two together ?" Asked Bonnie.

"Less than twenty-four hours." Answered the fox.

She looked at them blankly.

"And you already had se-"

"NO !" They answered simultaneously.  
"Then how come you're covered in eachother's fur ?" Stu had talked, raising his glass that had finished so his wife could serve him another.

"We slept in the same bed. But we did nothing !" Judy felt like a high-school girl again, trying to justify herself, and her actions to her parents.

The Hopps had gone silent. They were looking for their words, worried looks on their faces.

"He's not.. Manipulating you ?" Asked her father.

"No. I trust him."

"I would never do that, mister Hopps. I love your daughter."

"Kids, I can't say I approve but, by experience, whatever we say, Judy will do what she wants." Bonnie had talked this time, slowly approching Nick. "But if you hurt her, if you use her, I'll show you how predatory bunnies can get. Am I clear ?"

"Crystal clear." Nick didn't look even a bit frightened, but his tone was serious.

Judy put a paw on her mother's arm. "Mom, he won't hurt me."

"I'm your mother, Judy. If you don't listen to my advices, I'll do what I must to protect you."

The young doe sighed.

Stu had taken the bottle and was about to serve himself a third glass. He changed his mind a directly drunk a the neck. Before Bonnie could stop him, he had already downed most of it.

"Stu, for carrot's sake !"

"My daughter's dating a fox, I've earned the right to drink." He loudly put down the bottle, got up and stumbled toward Nick. He raised a finger as if he was about to say something but he changed his mind, stumbling in the direction of the living room. "Get off the couch kids. Daddy needs a nap." A few seconds later they could hear loud snoring coming from the sofa.

"Is he going to be okay ?" Asked Nick.

"He took the news better that I would've expected." answered Judy.

"Really ?"

"Oh yes ! A few years ago, he would've immediately thrown you out, shotgun in hand." Answered Bonnie. She had said it with a smile but she wasn't joking.

The silence grew for a few second before Jessica broke it.

"Maybe he should have."

"What ?" Shot back Judy and her mother at the same time. Nick simply sipped his cocoa, a half-amused look on his face.

 _Here it goes. I'm surprised it's from her._

"You can't be serious Judy !" added the cousin "Dating a fox ! Are you crazy ?"

"What because he's a fox he's not worth it ?"

Jessica dismissed it with a wave of her paw.

"I don't care that he's a fox. You're dating a predator ! It's just wrong !"

Nick gave Judy's cocoa cup to Bonnie who sipped in it. Jessica wasn't her daughter and this discussion wasn't her battle.

"How so ? How is it wrong to date a predator ?"

"It's unnatural, there is no way you can be compatible. And I'm not talking about sex, not even kits, I'm talking relationshipwise."

"Jessy, we love eachother. I'm not stupid, we will both have to make efforts and compromises-"

"It won't work, it's just a fling. You're simply attracted because of the challenge, the taboo !"

"And then what ? Maybe I'm attracted to him partly because it's against social norms. But I know my feelings, and I know I love him. You don't get to tell me how I feel or should feel !" She shouted that last part, her paws shaking and her ears twitching in exasperation. Tears were slowly rising and she wasn't sure she would be able to hold them back.

"You're making a mistake !" She turned to the fox "I'm sorry Nick, it's not against you but I don't want my cousin hurt because of both her and your stupidity !"

Nick took another sip of his cup, looking alternatively to Judy and her cousin. His girlfriend was upset, fuming and he decided it was time to say something. He got up and went straight to Jessica. He leaned forward looking her in the eyes.

"Just because you can't understand how something can work, doesn't mean it can't work, dumb bunny." His mouth was grinning but his eyes weren't. "Yes, your cousin can be a bit impulsive, but you're not giving her enough credit. She will prove you wrong, as she did with everyone and everything she's done so far." He went back to Judy taking her paws into his. "And I can't wait to be part of it." He whispered, leaning and kissing her between the ears.

"You both are so- Screw this, I'm out." Jessica left the kitchen and they sound heard the entrance door slam behind her.

"This, I didn't see coming" Admitted Judy, leaning on her fox.

"She'll come around, give her time." Said her mother. Judy as surprised, though she had taken it a bit hard, her mother was bouncing back quickly. Maybe a bit too much.

They all finished their breakfast and helped to clean the kitchen. Not long after, Stu woke up and they went to the festival. Nick and Judy went to visit but soon went back to their booth, not really in the mood. Being here with Judy's parents felt awkward so they went around to greet Gideon.

"Hey guys." The fox wasn't as cheerful as usual, he gave them a strange vibe. Next to him, Jessica was serving the clients ignoring them.

 _Oh no Gid, not you too._

They greeted him. He waved a paw at them, so they would follow him in the back of his booth. He started talking with a low voice.

"So you are... ?"

"Together yes. I suppose Jessy talked to you about it."

"Also explains Nick's scent on you yesterday. And today."

The three of them awkwardly looked at eachother. The chubby fox lifted his paws.

"Guys, I've nothing against it. I don't know if it will work, but my therapy opened my eyes a bit. If it doesn't hurt anyone, I don't see no reason to be against it."

"Thanks Gid, it means a lot."

The fox scratched his head.

"It's nothing. I'm more worried about Jessica, she's really upset about all this. I know it's not my place to tell you what to do, but maybe give her space, so she can sort out her thoughts. I'll try to talk to her later okay ?"

"You're right, we'll leave her alone. No point in insisting. We're going back to our own booth, have a nice day."

Nick's face was blank, no look of worry, but Judy seemed a bit upset by all this. Sure, she knew her family wouldn't take it well, but her cousin's reaction was a big blow. As they were about to enter the Hopps' booth, they overheard her parents conversation.

"I don't understand it Bonnie. Why does she always do the most- the most bizarre things ?"

"I don't know. I really don't. She's a nice girl, she always does her best. But it's like she must choose the hardest path."

"And what if the fox really is toying with her ? You know how those guys can be."

"Stu !"

"What ? A species can't earn such a reputation without it being a bit true."

"I don't disagree with you, but we can't judge people on what their ancestors did. That's what Bellwether wanted, and it wasn't pretty."

"You're right. I'm sorry. I simply can't get over it. Not yet. I can't stop thinking she's making a mistake. Damn, this week's going to be hard."

"We'll pull through, don't worry."

They hugged, trying to give themselves a bit of courage.

As the conversation had ended, Judy took Nick by the paw and went to her parents. Nick glanced at her and she was wearing a fake mask of calm and confidence.

 _Judy, if there is one thing I didn't want you to learn from me, that was this._

"Hey mom, dad !"

"Hey, Judy !"

"Hey, Jude the dude !"

The three of them were using a cheerful and warm tone, but to Nick, none of them sounded convincing.

"So Nick and I were talking and- Uhm- I think it would be best if we got back to Zootopia."

"Why ? Are you sure ?" asked Bonnie, disconcerted "You've been here for only a couple of days and he just arrived."

"I think we all need a bit of space, and time to think about all this. Jessy's upset, and I know you both can't be taking it too well. I think it's best for everyone if I leave for now."

The doe's parents were now wearing embarassed looks. It was obvious thay tried to put on a brave front for their daughter, but this was a bit too heavy. They knew there was nothing they could do or say to change her mind, but it was too soon for them to roll with it.

Judy's father broke the silence. "I hate to see you leave this soon, but you're right. Us, Jessy, and both of you, we all need time to think. Don't worry, we'll be okay. What's important is for you to be happy."

She came and hugged them both.

"I love you guys."

"We love you too."

"Have a nice trip, text us when you're home."

...

The walk from the festival to Nick's car was silent. The fox knew the bunny was upset and sad but didn't really know what to do or say to make it better. He unlocked the vehicle and they hopped in. As he was about to start the car, he heard Judy beginning to sob. He grabbed her and wrapped her in his arm, trying to give her comfort.

"I kn- I knew it wouldn't be easy. I- I'm sorry if what they said hurt you."

"Shhh, I'm alright, don't worry about me." He caressed her head as she was burying her face in his chest. Her sobbing died down in a few minutes.

"Not to complain but my shirt is soaked. If you wanted for me to drive shirtless, you could've just asked."

The bunny wiped her tears, chuckling at the joke.

"It's just- every decision I take, everything I want to do... They're always so pessimistic. 'It's great to have dream as long as you don't believe in them too much', that's what they always said to me. I know they said that so I wouldn't be too disapointed if I failed."

"That's a fucked up thing to say to a kid. But maybe if my parents had told me this, I wouldn't have taken the scout thing so hard."

They stayed snuggled against eachother for a bit, before Judy began to move.

"Enough bad thoughts, we have to get back to Zootopia."

...

They quickly packed Judy's belongings, she said good bye to every bunny she saw. As they approached the car, a voice called them.

"Nick, Judy, leaving so soon ?" It was Terry, he was carrying a large basket full of vegetables.

"Hey uncle Terry. Yes we're leaving. I have things to do in Zootopia and-"

"And you're giving space to your parents while they take in all this couple stuff."

"Yeah, that too."

The rabbit scratched his head with a thinking expression and gave them the basket.

"Then take a bit of the farm with you. I know you will miss it. And sorry about Jessy, I know how she reacted. It surprised me, with how close she is with Gideon."

"That was strange to me too."

The silence lingered for a bit before Terry broke it again.

"Well ! On my end, I don't see no problem with you two being a couple. A guy driving this distance just to declare a girl can't be all bad. For what it's worth, this bunny thinks you're a perfectly fine. For a fox." he winked. "Drive safely."

"It means a lot sir." Said Nick, shaking his hand. Judy hugged her uncle and both bunny and fox got in the car.

"How long until we get home ?' Asked the bunny.  
"I made the trip in four hours, but it's more like a seven hour drive if I respect the road regulations. Sleep if you want, we can take turns."

"Thanks Nick."

She wrapped herself in her coat and soon she slipped into slumber. Nick put on his headphones and went into driving mode. He resisted the urged to crush the gas pedal, knowing that Judy wouldn't be okay with him over-speeding.

Hours passed, the bunny waking-up and getting back to sleep a few time until Nick made a stop at a gas-station where he refilled the tank. Judy got out too to stretch her legs.

"You alright Carrots ?"

"Yes, I am. I want to drive a bit, if that's okay with you."

"Of course, I wanted to take a nap anyway."

They switched seats and Nick used Judy's coat as a blanket.

 _Smells like Judy !_

...

They arrived to zootopia around 6PM. The sun had started to go down in the horizon. Nick was back at the wheel, calmly driving around in the street.

"Do you want me to bring you to your place ?"

"No, not really. I don't want to be alone right now."

"Want to stay at mine tonight ?"

"Yes, please."

She was always so easy to read, at least to him. He pulled over in front of his building and helped her xarry her suitcase.

His flat was still mostly empty. A single bed, a single sofa in the living room with a coffe table, and a kitchen with only a fridge and a microwave oven.

"Nick, remember the offer you made me a few weeks ago ?"

"What offer ?"

"Coming to live with you."

"Yes, I remember. It still stands."

Judy smiled at him.

"I think I'll take you up on it. I don't have a lot of stuff so I won't invade too much."

"You can invade my flat whenever you want, Carrots." he joked, has he leaned to kiss her. He took her in his arms, lifting her from the floor. "I'll have my very own cute bunny."

She truggled to get out of his embrace "No calling me cute !" but she couldn't resist the kissing and nuzzling and soon she was kissing and nuzzling him back.

"I think I found your weakness, you can't resist foxes. Your survival instincts suck." he began tickling her. "You're lost in the big bad fox's den, and you will never escape." She finally grabbed his arms and pushed them back, giving him a passionnate kiss.

"I don't see any reason why I would want to escape." Their gaze locked, and suddenly Nick wasn't so sure he was the only predator in the room. And it was more exciting than scary.

"So" he said, cutting the burning sensation he had felt rising inside himself "We can still move your stuff now. You live close, I have a car. I can order food to be delivered in an hour, we can make the trip there and back with your stuff in less than forty minutes."

"Okay, let's go. The sooner it's done the better. I'll talk with my landlady about the paperwork while you carry the suitcase."

The trip took less time than Nick had expected. Aside from clothes and a laptop, there was nothing Judy needed to take in her room. She had a word with the landlady and went back in the car.

"Everything's good Carrots ?"

"Yep, all I have to do is to send her a registered mail, come and ascertain the state of the appartment and I'm good."

He pulled out, making his way to his own block.

"You don't feel like we rush this a bit ? I don't want you to force yourself."

"Maybe we're rushing, maybe not. To me, it all feels right. We've waited for too long, maybe I'm just trying to make up for lost time."

She was wearing a genuinely happy smile. All the sadness she had felt while at Bunny-Burrow seemed to have disappeared.

"Now I must meet your mother. After all, it's partly thanks to her that you confessed to me and that we are together."

"Yes, you must. What about we go and surprise her tomorrow morning ?"

"Deal."

* * *

 **And that's that. This chapter was longer than usual, but contrary to what happens when I post a short chapter, it won't affect the timing of the next one. So see you on monday !**


	14. 14 Sick Leave

**Hello again, I wanted to make a few precision. For those who have watched the movie multiple time, there is an incoherence in my fanfic. The travel time between the burrows and Zootopia is way too long since their technically 211 miles (340 Kilometers in non-retar- decimal units) which would make it more of a four hours drive. Lets just add 160 Kilometers (or 100 miles for those so in love with the inferi- imperial system) and act as if nothing happenned, deal ?**

 **Another precision : I consider Zootopia being an independant city/state, like Monaco, Andorra and other similar cities/countries. I think it's more coherent and logical for it to work that way. That being said, there are a few things with this city that defy all sense of logic and ask for a certain amount of incredulity suspension, since I'm not about (nor am I able) to explain everything.**

 **Review Time :**

 **Foxlover91 : I think Finnick deserved a little happiness. Judy and Nick were bound to be waught. Maybe that wille teach them to be a bit more discreet ? Funny how you and Fox in the hen house made similar conslusions about Jessica. Not saying who's got it more right though...**

 **jamdea : Thank you for the compliment.**

 **Fox in the hen house : It's my goal. Killing my reader with fluffyness. And cliffhangers. I don't think Judy's parent sucked that much, they certainly do not deserve an award but if one were to compare it to a reaction toward some sort of coming out it could have been much worse (but also much better...). Funny how you and Foxlover91 made similar conslusions about Jessica. Not saying who's got it more right though...**  
 **That's the thing about rushing. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes, things get in the way...**

 **One new chapter coming up !**

* * *

She slowly rose from her slumber. The sun was up and it had been years since she had slept this well. No bad dreams, no worries. Only blissful sleep and the sound of her mate's breath at her side. She felt a big turmoil of feeling inside her. Strange forgotten sensations. Happinness. It felt like happinness. She couldn't keep herself to giggle, nuzzling the fennec fox who was sleeping next to her.

He turned toward her and she planted a kiss on his snout. He grunted while sleeping. She kissed him again and he grabbed her face with his paws, returning her kiss.

 _Is he awake ?_

A snort answered to her. She caressed his face. Part of her wanted to let him sleep, but another wanted a second round. And that part was stronger. She nuzzled him again and kissed his forehead. The fennec fox woke up in turn and blinked several time, chasing the last traces of sleep in his eyes.

"Hello beautiful." He said in a raspy voice.

"Hello, slept well ?"

"Made a strange dream. There was a naked vixen, sheets and a whole lot of kissing."

"Strange how dreams can be premonitory."

She gave him a short kiss that he returned.

"Using such fancy words this early ?"

"See if you can understand this better."

She gave him another kiss, burning with passion. Instantly, he felt his body filled with envy, every trace of tiredness disappearing.

...

They were lying down on the bed, facing eachother, their paws intertwined. The sheets had fallen on the floor. They were wearing statisfied and loving smiles, but the vixen expression seemed somewhat strange to the fennec.

"Something's bothering you Vi ?"

"No. Not really. More like something feels... Different."

"How so ? Is everything okay ?"

"Yes ! It's, uhm- how should I put this..."

"You don't need to use gloves with me."

"Right. You know how when foxes mate for the first time, it create a kind of bond between them. Something really strong and primal ?"

"I know, it's a bit different fo fennec, the bond is weaker for instance."

"Well, since John, I didn't really mate with anyone. Didn't date anyone either."

"What are you getting at ?"

"Since you're my second mate, it seems that this time, the bond is a lot weaker than my first. It feels strange."

 _Does it mean her feelings are weaker than she thought ?_

The Vixen scratched her head, reflecting on what she had just said.

"I don't know a lot about mammals behaviours, I didn't study it. Most of us kept remnants of our primal nature, and I know it can shape us for some part." She made a pause. "I don't think it has any meaning per se, if anything, I think it's because you are my second mate and thus, the bond can't really form like the first time."

"I don't really understand what you are trying to say."

"What I'm trying to say is : contrary to most foxes' relationship, me being with you after we mated won't be in any part due to my instincts pushing me toward you. I feel more free than ever. I love you Finnick, and I'm with you because I really want to."  
He kissed her, relief and happinness flowing inside him.

"I love you too Vivienne."

Their breakfast was composed of sausage and eggs with coffee. And lots of kissing. They stayed together all morning, laughing and talking about their life outside of their meeting, trying to catch up on the years they had wasted.

"I must say, I don't look forward to being back in my van." joked the fennec.

"You don't have to go back to your van. You can crash here."

"I don't want to impose. Seems to me we should take it more slowly than that."

"You mean slowly as in 'taking one last drink' on our first date ?"

"Hey, lady. You came at me wid' all that foxy charm. What could little-me do to resist all this ?" He said, making a gesture toward her whole body.

"I don't see what you're talking about." she had a devilish smile similar to Nick's, wagging her tail in a languish manner. "But the offer's out there. If you need a place to stay, the door's open."

"If I crash here one night more, I'll stay here forever. And living outside my van isn't the best motivation to continue the hustling life. I'll end up being a couch potato."

"You can't hustle forever. This kind of job, either you end up creating your own 'business', or you end up like all the other hobos in the city."

"Hey, I know that, but as a fennec without any diplomas or experience in any fully legal job, I don't get a lot of opportunities."

They stayed silent, the conversation had taken a serious turn. Finnick had thought about it for some time now, he couldn't keep doing this job forever. Without the kid and after the nighthowler case, it had become more and more difficult to get by. He would have to put his mind to it if he wanted to change, like the kid did by becoming a police officer.

 _No way I'll become a cop._

Finnick chuckled at the thought.

"Let's leave this conversation for another time, alright ? I don't really feel like talking about this today."

But as they silently cuddled in the sofa, he couldn't keep his thoughts to come back to the matter. He had been a hustler for the last twenty-five years and he liked it. But there was really nothing else he knew how to do.  
So what to do now ? If his relationship Vivienne was to be serious, he would have to find something more respectable, more legal. And that would earn him more money than what he got to get by.

He turned the problem in his head, trying to look at it from differrent angles, see how he could adapt what he knew to another job, but another problem always appeared. He was fox, well a fennec fox. But still, people wouldn't trust him that easily.

* * *

Wolford was his usual cheery self, whistling as he entered the precinct. Today was going to be a good day. Well, most days were good days to him anyway. First he'd go greet Clawhauser, then he'd make his way to the cafeteria and have a a nice warm mug of coffe, then he'd go to his office and fill some paperwork he hadn't finished the day before while waiting for Blackfur, his partner.

He crossed path with Fangmeyer and they exchanged a few words before he went on his way. Still whistling, he served himself some coffee and took a couple donuts, bringing one of them to his favorite chubby cheetah. With them being flatmates, they had become close friends, and Clawhauser's smile could brighten anyone's mood, not that the wolf needed it. After making his way to his office he began working. It took him about thirty minute to see the end of his paperwork and he began wondering why Blackfur was late.

 _Traffic probably._

Just as this thought as formed, his desk phone rang.

"Officer Wolford, ZPD, Precinct One" he mechanically answered.

"Hey Wolford, Clawhauser speaking."

"You need something Big Ben ?"

"No, I'm calling to tell you that Officer Blackfur just called in sick. Bogo assigned you at parking duty for the day."

"Blackfur's sick ? She was perfectly fine yesterday."

"Perhaps she caught a cold last night ? I don't know. Anyway, the joke-mobile is waiting for you."

Nick had nicknamed the little vehicle and it had stuck. Now everyone called it that way.

The wolf sighed. He didn't like parking duty. He didn't like to be the one to punish people. Arrest them, he was okay with, helping them, it was what he lived for. But giving parking ticket wasn't how he liked to spend a day.

Wolford had put on the vest and was driving down the street, looking at the parked car. Sometimes, one of them hadn't paid the parking metter in time and he had to write down a ticket. Sometimes, a civilian gave him a 'kind' word on how he was really helping the city by doing this job.  
The wolf passed in front of a sushi place and made a stop.

 _I could order something to take out for later and bring it to Blackfur. I think I still have her adress._

He entered the restaurant.

"Hello, is it possible to order in advance for noon ?"

"Of course" answered the clerk, a red panda in a suit. "What will you have ?"

The wolf took a quick look at the menu.

"A menu B4, and three boxes of D6" He had chosen a simple menu with sushis for himself but he knew that only one wouldn't be enough for the panda, that's why he had chosen to take a bunch of them. Worst case scenario, she could eat them this evening.

The morning was nearing its end and he had written about forty tickets. I wasn't a bad score but since Hopps had set the bar above two hundred in half a day, it seemed like nothing. He went back to the restaurant and went to Blackfur's place. As he was parking, he saw the large frame of his partner leaving the building. Nothing in her demeanor showed that she was sick. If anything, her pace was quick even if her head seemed a bit slumped.

 _What the hell ?_

He wanted stop and ask her where she was going but having called in sick, maybe it was personnal enough so that she wouldn't want to talk about it. He wanted to follow her but with the car, he knew he wouldn't be discreet enough, and he didn't really want to intrude on something personal. In the end, his curiosity was stronger. He opened the little trunk of the joke-mobile, taking out the firs-aid kit, emptied the bag and put the sushi boxes inside. He also put down the orange vest as it was too visible and began following the panda.

He saw her stop at a flower-shop, the owner seemed to know her as he greeted her by calling her by her own name. She bought two bouquets and resumed her walk. As he was walking behind her, trying to stay hidden he began understanding where she was going. Pawgate cemetery was near, that could explain why she had called in sick and bought those flowers.

He had made a good guess and a few minutes later, she passed the gate of the graveyard. From uncomfortable, the wolf's mood went to downright shitty.

 _Okay, I screwed up this time. I really should go now._

But he couldn't dampen his curiosity and followed her from a distance, staying behind trees, out of her line of sight. She ended in front of a tomb stone. He couldn't hear from where she was but she seemed to talk with the one which had been buried here. She put a bouquet on the grave, wiped her eyes and walked back to the gates of the graveyard. The wolf turned around the tree behing which he was hidden so she wouldn't see him and made his way to the tombstone.

'Darren Friedkin Blackfur, a loving husband, a kind brother, and a caring uncle.'

 _Friedkin... Why does the name ring a bell ?_

He turned around, the panda wasn't in sight anymore. He ran to the gate and looked right and left. He saw her turn to a corner, the second bouquet still in hand. As he continued following her, he was still trying to figure out where he had heard the name. He almost had it, but each time the memory was in his grasp, it slid and went back in the darkness.

They walked more than twenty minute. Wolford's pause was nearing its end but it made no differrence to him, he wanted to know, he felt that for some reason, all this was important.

He saw her taking the stairs of a building. He lift his eyes to see what it was.

'Downtown Principal Hospital'.

 _Of course it would get worse._

He entered the building five minutes after she did and went to the information desk tended to by a female zebra with too much make-up.

"Good day officer. What can I do for you ?"

"Hello, I'm looking for a patient of yours called Blackfur."

"Room 512, fifth floor. Take the elevator to the left. I just saw her mother come in, is everything alright ?"

 _Fuck no, it isn't._

"Of course. Just some routine work."

The hospital had a gift shop, and he decided to buy some flowers, just in case.

He decided to take the stairs so he wouldn't risk being seen leaving the elevator. With his cop training, five floors were and easy climb.  
As he left the stairs and entered the hallway, he heard part of his mind screaming to leave, to get back to the joke-mobile and act as if he knew nothing. But he knew himself enough to know that he would put his foot in his mouth soon enough and give away what he knew. He shut out the voice of cowardice and found the room he was looking for.

Through the open door, he could see her partner sitting on the bed of an unconscious panda caressing her cheek. The smell of sorrow, anger and alcohol hit the wolf like a brick. Judging by her size, the unconscious panda could be no more than fifteen, but at the same time she looked old and worn-out. The medical intrument were beeping at a steady rythm, but beside that, the room was perfectly silent.

He looked at the scene for a few second and knocked at the door, entering the room, trying to control his expression to not look too embarassed. He kept the bouquet in his hand, not knowing what to do with it.

The silence lingered for a bit, he didn't want to break it. Whatever he would, he was persuaded it wouldn't be appropriate.

"Come and say hello to my daughter, Wolford." Blackfur's voice a mix of warmness and sorrow, something that the wolf had never heard from her.  
He approached the bed and stood next to his partner.

"Uhm- Hello..."

"Lauren."

"Hello Lauren. My name is Augustyn Wolford. I prefer to be called Wolford."

The panda officer turned to her daughter.

"He's my partner on the force, he's a good officer and a nice mammal."

"Your mother is too, I wouldn't want anyone else having my back on the field."

"He's the one that tries to always cheer up everyone. Never stops joking."

"I try, your mother isn't really receptive to my humour. But I haven't lost hope on her yet." the panda chuckled but couldn't hide her sadness.  
Silence fell again on the room. A feeling if uneasyness slowly grew into Wolford's mind.

I really shouldn't be here.

"I- I'm sorry I-"

"Could you stay for a bit ?"

"Huh ?"

"Could you stay, please ?"

"Of course."

He would be late for his shift but he didn't care.

 _Screw my shift, this is more important._

He put his paw on his partner shoulder. She didn't move, keeping caressing her daughter's face.

"I went to see your uncle this morning. He said to say hello." She made a pause, swallowing her emotions. "Sorry I didn't come those last few months, I was transferred to precinct One at last. It's a lot of work but the people are really nice. I met Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde. The ones who solved the nighthowler case. You'd really like them, they are two of the most dedicated cops I ever met." Tears were rolling down her cheek.

She got up, leaving the room and waiting for the wolf outside.

The wolf followed her, not knowing what else to do.

...

The ride in the elevator was silent, the wolf didn't dare say anithing until they exited the building.

"I'm sorry I followed you Wight. I wanted to bring you some food since I thought you were sick and all. I saw you leave your building and-"

"I'm not mad Wolford. Maybe I should be but I'm not. If anything, I was glad you were there."

"You were ?"

"My family, my husband... Most of them won't come anymore."

"Have they- given up ?"

"My daughter has been in a coma for the last nineteen years. I'm the only one who hasn't given up."

She started walking, the wolf followed her. She lead them to a park and sat on a bench, looking into the distance. He sat next to her, putting down the bag he was carrying.

"No, it's not about giving up. I simply can't let her go." She made a long pause, the wolf didn't dare to ask her why. "If you have followed me, you've seen me enter the cemetery. I was visiting Darren, my brother." She took an inspiration. "Lauren was six at the time. We were going back from a restaurant, she was here, Darren too and so was my husband. I don't remember why, we stopped in front of a shop. I let her out of my sight ten seconds. Ten bloody seconds, and she was in the middle of the street. My brother- he tried to push her away from a truck and was hit by it instead . There was a car coming from the other way. It hit her head and her back, she fell into a coma instantly."

 _So that's why she was so mad at those parents._

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry."

"You now what the most fucked part is ? I should let her go and grieve, that would be best for everyone. But I can't because if she dies, my brother's death will have been for nothing. And I can't accept that."

He put his paw on her arm, since she was too big for him to reach her shoulder.

"You know Wolford, we see those kind of tragedies every day on the job. Destroyed families, grieving mammals. I thought I would get numb to all this but it doesn't work that way. It teared me and my husband appart too. We're technically still married but we separated about a year after the accident. When each time you see someone, you're reminded of what you have lost, it's inevitable."

"If there was anything I could do or say..." He gave her the bouquet.

She took the flowers and looked at them. "Thanks, Wolford."

"I also bought lunch, but I don't know if you're hungry." He opened his bag and took out the sushi boxes.

"I am, I always forget to eat when I'm in this state. Thanks." She took a box and opened it.

"I wouldn't be a descent partner if I didn't have your back."

They ate silently and soon after, Wolford had to leave her. She insisted he went back to his duty, not wanting for him to get in trouble because of her. They parted ways in front of the hospital, Wolford waving as she went back inside.

* * *

 **I just noticed that Wolford/Blackfur's chapter were systematically depressing. It's something I should fix. Maybe by making depressing chapters with other characters to even the field. Maybe kill off a couple of mammals. I'll make a character list and roll some dice to see who's going to get it first.**

 **Kidding !**

 **Or am I ?**


	15. 15 A Surprise Visit

**Thanks to Fox in the hen house, Fowlover91 and Robert Escher for their reviews. I'm glad the last chapter had the desired effect, it was quite the challenge to make it seem natural.**

 **Now that half my readership has hung itself and the other half has fallen into the pits of depression, I think we can proceed with our story.**

* * *

She woke up in a ball of fur and warmth. Once again, she had slept in Nick's arms and began to wonder if she would ever be able to sleep alone again. The sun was up and her boyfriend was still sleeping. She buried her face in his fur and took in his scent. She heard the the faint growl of his breathing and the throbbing of his heart. As she was nuzzling him, Nick slowly woke up, squeezing her gently in his arms.

"Didn't know I had plushies in my bed." he yawned. She giggled.

"I'm not a plush, I'm you gir-"

He shut her up putting a paw on her snout "Shh, plushies don't talk, they're made for cuddles." He nuzzled her between the ears.

"Could a plush do this ?" She asked, kissing him a giving a gentle bite at his lip. He answered by slowly running a claw in her back. He felt her shiver as her kiss went from gentle to passionnate. He ran the claw again and her kiss became more pressing, her breathe shortening.

"S-stop. Bad idea."

He stop his claw in the middle of her back and nibbled her ear. New shiver.

"Why ? Are you afraid of the predator's claws ?" He said in a playful tone.  
He straightened above her, locking his emerald gaze into her amethyst eyes and ran his claws from her chest to the bottom of her belly. She was holding the sheets with her paws with all her strength, her joints aching, arms shaking.

 _Am I scaring her ?_

"You alright, Judy ?"

"Y-yes."

He took out his claws in front of her.

"If those are scaring you, I can take them away." he said in a gentle tone.

"No, they're not scaring me. It's the complete opposite." she blurted.

Immediately she saw the subtle change in the fox expression.

"Carrots ?" The tone was mischievous, his face slowly leaing toward hers.

"Yes ?" She knew this couldn't mean anything good for her.

"Would you happen to have some sort of fang-fetish ?" He was still leaning, his grin slowly revealing his teeth.

"N-No ?" her voice was meek.

"So if I do this, you shouldn't react to it." His face changed course, his fangs now completely revealed, and he nibbled at her neck, while he caressed her shoulders with his claws. Judy's shudders were ponctuated with low moans.

"S-stop, I can't take it. If you want to take this slow, please stop this." he slowly stopped, tenderly kissing her.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist torturing you a bit." He caressed her cheek. "No fang fetish, you said ?"

"Only yours. You're the only predator I could imagine letting do that to me."

"You told me to stop though." his grin said that he perfectly knew why she did, but he couldn't resist taunting her.

"Because if you didn't have... Let's just say the 'taking it slow' wouldn't have stood for much longer."

"Understood Carrots. I'm stopping this for today." He stood up and said the three words she wanted to hear. "To be continued."

...

He went in the kitchen to fix her some breakfast. She quickly joined him, with the pack of decaf she had brought from her old place.

"So what's the program for today, slick ?"

He looked at his phone. 9AM.

"First, breakfast, then shower, then we're going to see my mother, with which I must spend at least half the day to make up for last time. Then, I'm going to see Finnick and try to cheer him up a bit and make him tell to me who was the lady he had it so bad for. Then probably dinner. Oh, and we must make plans to see Ben too."

"Yep, I want to now how things are going with his stud of a boyfriend."

"I mainly want to announce to him that we're together before he discovers it by himself and make sure he doesn't tell the whole planet."

Judy snickered.

"That too."

They ate their breakfast and took a shower. Then they took Nick's car to see Vivienne.

"I wish I could keep this car. I never had my own and I must admit it's really handy."

"How did you get it anyway ?"

"When I said to mister Big it was to see you, he didn't hesitate."

"Don't you owe him some sort of debt now ?"

"Probably yes. But he is reasonable, whatever he will ask of me will be mostly legal and comparable to what I asked of him. He knows how to adapt the 'debts' to the people who owes them to him. Don't worry about it."

"Mostly legal ?"

"Carrots, as I said, don't worry. I spent my life up to this year doing mostly legal things. And I won't accept to do what he asks if it's not ethical."

The answer seemed to satisfy the bunny, even if she didn't like the idea of Nick running some errands for a mob-boss.

...

He pulled over in front of his mother's building. Once again the door was closed. Judy was about to call at the intercom but Nick stopped her.

"Talking about mostly legal things." he said with his most mischievous grin. He took out the two metal rod he had used two days ago and began unlocking the door.

"Nick !"

"What ?"

"It's breaking and entering !"

"I'm not really breaking anything. As for entering, I'm sure if we called, she would invite us inside."

As he finished the sentence, the door opened and they went through.

"How many of those hidden talents do you have ?" She looked upset but underneath was hidden a slight smile.

"Too much to count." The shit-eating grin was firmly in place and he kept it for most of the ascension. As they arrived at the door, Nick rang the bell, a few second later, her mother opened to him in the same bathrobe she was wearing when he had come from the first time.

"Nick ! So nice to see you !" She hugged him briefly. Her tone was cheerful, but Nick sensed something strange.

 _Must be nothing, she's probably only surprised._

The vixen turned to the doe with a small smile, but also a light frown.

"You must be the reason why my son left so soon."

"Yes, sorry." Answered the bunny, a bit embarassed "The name's Judy Hopps."  
"Don't worry about it. I'm Vivienne Wilde. You can call me Vivienne, or Vi for short."

She made them enter into the living room and sat them into the sofa while she sat in the armchair facing them. Nick smelled some weird and familiar scent but put it on the account of him not noticing it the last time he was here.

"I didn't think you'd get back so soon. Did something happen ?"

Nick looked at Judy. She began to speak.

"Well, Vivienne, as it happens, I'm dating your son."

Vivienne's smile immediately grew on her face.

"I kind of already knew it. No point in bringing you here otherwise."

"And we accidentaly outed ourselves to my family. They didn't take it well, but better than I thought they would. Except for my cousin who said some- uh- hurtful things."

"Is she some kinda bigotted asshat ?"

"Apparently yes. Though it seemed to be more about us being prey and predators than me being a fox." said the fox.

The vixen scratched her head, she didn't like what she heard, but it didn't surprise her.

"As I already said to Nick, I don't know if pred-prey could work, but anyone have the right to be with whoever the fuck they want."

The dirty language used by Nick's mother phased her a bit but strangely it suited her. She looked like someone no one should mess with and it seemed to come with the package.

"Anyway, I thought we all needed some space and I got back to Zootopia with Nick."

"She lives with me now."Added Nick "She has left the shoebox that pretended to be a room."

"That soon ? You didn't lose time. I hope you know what you are doing."

Nick lift his eyes to the ceiling, in a half-annoyed half-amused manner.

"Mom, I know. I'm being careful, we did nothing yet. I know it's not something someone should do the first day they are together. Or even the first week."

Judy felt a bit embarassed at where the conversation had gone but it seemed that the matter wasn't something to be ashamed about for Nick and his mother.

"Yes, it would be very irresponsible."

Nick heard the weird tone she had used. The weird smell lingering in the flat was kind of familiar and mixed with something else. Something more primal. He lifted a brow.

He stared inquisitively at her for a few second, she held his gaze, but he felt something was afoot. Family instincts.

"Mom ?"

"Yes son ?"

"Is someone else in the appartment ?"

The attitude of his mother shifted instantly. Instead of the focused and proud woman she usualy was, she looked now a bit embarassed and incomfortable.

"Maybe ?"

Nick chuckled, a sly grin slowly growing on his face.

 _This gon' be good._

"Mom ? Did you do something very irresponsible while I was gone ?"

Judy looked at her partner with wide eyes. Even if anything like that happenned, she herself would never have dared to tease any of her parents about it.  
The vixen didn't answer right away. Her gaze was locked into her son's but she was clearly struggling to keep it here. Judy still felt embarassed, they had come by surprised and clearly their timing couldn't have been worse for the vixen. The female vulpine blinked and then called.

"You can come out, they are onto us anyway."

They heard the door of Vivienne's room open and a few footstep approaching.

"Hey kids. It's me. How you doin' ?" Finnick came to face them trying to keep a straight face, but the embarrassement was clearly showing. Judy's jaw immediately dropped, Vivienne covered her face in shame, and Nick stared blanky at his friend.

 _Should've known._

The silence grew, awkward and tense. Neither Judy nor Vivienne knew what to say or what Nick was thinking.  
Nick stood up and slowly approached the fennec. His face, like his voice was completely serious. If it was a mask, it was one of the most perfect he had ever worn.

"Finnick."

"Nick."

They were face to face, tension still rising.

"You hurt my mother, I burn down your van."

"Wid' dis kinda logic, you shoulda burn a van each day for the past twenty years."

The atmosphere had gotten so tense, Judy could hear every pound of her own fast beating heart. They stared down for a few second more, none of them breaking.  
Nick chuckled.

"Glad to see you're out of the pit."

"Glad to see you finally manned up and declared to your bunny."

"Right back at you."

They both broke into laughter, fist bumping eachother. Nick went back to sit on the couch next to Judy who was trying to put her jaw back in place.

"But seriously. I'll burn down your van."

"Got it."

Finnick took another chair and placed it next to Vivienne, sitting and gently grabbing her paw.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you Nick" said his mother "I didn't know how you'd take it."

Nick stood silent for a few seconds, pondering what he could say. He didn't feel angry, he didn't feel betrayed but it hadn't come to his mind that her mother would look for another lover. He felt more okay with it than he thought he should be.

"Dad's been dead for fourteen years, Finnick's one of the most decent hustler I know. Sure it's strange to know my best friend is getting frisky with my mother. But hey, I'm dating a bunny, who am I to point out what's strange and what isn't."

The doe lightly elbowed him in the ribs.

"Hey, I'm right here."

"I know you are." He said, kissing her between the ears. "So yeah, maybe you should have talked to me about it. Maybe Finnick should have talked to me about it. But maybe in the two days I suppose you've spent together, you didn't find the time to call and tell me." he raised his paws "It's not an accusation. Two days is an awfully short time. And I'm sure you like us are still trying to sort out your feelings. So no, I'm not upset. If anything, I'm glad both of you have found someone. And I find it fun that you found one another."

It was one of the few times Judy had heard Nick talk from his heart without a joke, without a smirk, without a mask. He was proving to be the caring and loving mammal she always knew he was, and it filled her heart with proud and joy. And love.  
Everyone in the room stayed silent for a few second, taking in what Nick had said.

Finnick ended up breaking the quiet mood.

"Getting frisky ?" he asked with an amused tone.

"Should have I said 'Shaggin' the hell out of mah mothah' ?" Nick joked, parodying the little vulpine's accent.

"Nick !" shouted Judy, punching him in the ribs, hard this time. Vivienne's had put her paw on her mouth, trying to keep from bursting into laughter.

...

Vivienne had brew some coffee and served everyone. She had also made some toast and put a platter on the coffe table between them.

"So Finnick, I must know for how long you were wooing my mother."

"Didn't really woo her. More like, I came 'round giving her your money, stayed a bit to give her some news, talked about stuff and tried to cheer her up. Didn't really understand I had fallen for her until six years ago."

"And you waited this long to declare ?"

"I made the first step. This idiot would never had done so otherwise." Said Vivienne.

"True."

Nick sipped his coffee and the asked "So since when are you two together ? Yesterday ? The day before ?"

"I went to talk to him right after you left to see Judy. He bought me dinner, and then we went home. I don't think you need to hear more."

"You're right, I don't. And you, when did you discover your feeling for him ?"

"The six months you spent at the academy, though I think I fell in love a long time ago. He stopped coming since he had no money to give me from you. Something about 'not having a real reason to come'" She stopped talking and turned to the fennec "Were you testing me ?"

"Yep. Completely backfired." his shoulder had slumped.

Nick began grinning and slightly switched topic.

"So now, this begs the question : Finnick, should I call you dad ?"

"Not if you want to keep your teeth, kid."

* * *

He had spent most of the morning in the kitchen, preparing the meal. As an appetizer, he had made a salad with Kale, cucumber, avocado and dried fruits. Following, there was the vegan option with curried eggplants, tomatoes and basil, and the carnivorous option was chicken marinated in coconut milk with sweat potato fries.  
The cheetah didn't seem like the patient type but he could spend hours in the kitchen, as long as people would be there to eat what he made. Sometimes he asked himself he shouldn't have been a cook but he prefered to keep cooking as a hobby.

Wolford had come several time to ask if his roommate needed help, but Clawhauser turned into some kind of obsessive mammal in the kitchen and had refused.  
Instead, the wolf had put on some music on the record-player, handling the vinyls with care. As noon approached, he heard the intercom ring. He let the guest in.

"Hey, Wolford ! How is it going ?" Nick shaked his hand.

"Peacefully since you two aren't at the precinct."

"Har har. I'm sure we'll have to pick twice the workload when we'll be back." Judy said, shaking the wolf's hand in turn.  
They entered the living room. Goodbye Blue Sky was playing on the record-player.

"Smells like heaven in here !" said the bunny.

"Sounds like purgatory in here !" said the Fox.

"Sorry guys," said the cheetah as he was taking a plate from the oven "I'll put something more cheery on, The Wall's not the most happy Pink Snoud's album."

"The record sounds old, perhaps it would be time to buy a new one."

"I don't know, there is something nice about hearing the music from the Orange Vinyl Version."

Nick's jaw dropped, Judy looked at him without understanding.

"What's the Orange Vinyl Version ?"

"Oh carrots, it's nothing much. The price range is only from one thousand and five hundred dollars to three thousand."

"For a record ? Ben, tell me you didn't pay this much."

"Nah, only cost me one thousand four hundred. And the guy threw in a bunch of other stuff."

It was Judy's jaw's turn to fall.

...

They sat at the table and began eating and talking about what they had done in the few days they didn't see eachothers.

"How is work these days ?"

"Believe it or not, we've had another case with a drugged guy carrying a gun. A zebra. He went completely nuts as soon as people tried to talk to him. Emptied his weapon in direction of civilians."

"Holy crap !" reacted Judy "How did I not hear about this ?"

"No civilians were killed. The few that were injured, the mayor was able to convince them to not talk to the press. Since the bodycount has stayed to zero, the story died down quickly." Explained the wolf.

"Don't say anyone you got it from me, but it's not the only one aggressive drugged mammal that has been arrested." Began Clawhauser "Seems there is a new drug on the street, and some speculate there are traces of Nighthowler in it."

"What ?" reacted Judy "No way, the moment you take nighthowler, you immediately turn feral, there is no delay."

"Maybe there is if mixed with other stuff. And there is also the memory loss symptom. As long as the drug is in control, no memory is recorded. But as I said, it's only speculation."

"And if the effects of the drugs are consistants, there has been only a few case yet, so it seems to be small scale." added the wolf.

"How do we know it's not another Bellwether incident ?" asked the fox.

"Preds and prey have been affected alike. Looks more like a new drug market than a plot. In any case, we'll stay vigilant."

The topic had slightly dampened the mood and silence installed itself for a bit. Until Wolford broke it.

"So Judy, I hear you went back to your hometown. How's the life away to the big city ?"

"Usually I'd say boring, but with the festival and some of the stuff that happenned, it was more animated. You know, large families. We can't really spend time together without being at eachother's throats."

She glanced at Nick to see his reaction to her almost slipping up. The calm mask was up, no cracks.

"Must be strange to have a family that large. I mean, I have 5 siblings and that's a lot by wolves standards."

"Only one sister here." said the cheetah.

"Seems like I win then, only son."

...

The dessert was simple lemong sorbet with whipped cream.

"Sorry guys, didn't have the time to make a cake."

"That was already plenty Ben. And the sorbet is really good." Said the bunny.

"On another matter, how's it going with your tiger Ben ?" asked the wolf.

The cheetah made a slight pause. His composure seemed to falter slightly but he recovered.

"Oh, we've stop seeing eachother."

 _Crap, I did it again,_ thought Wolford.

"Sorry to hear this, was it him or-" comforted Judy.

"I ended it. I wouldn't have worked out."

"Why ? If it's not too personnal."

The cheetah played with his spoon in the melting sorbet.

"In the beginning, it was alright. We've had several dates, fun dicussions, and fun other stuff." He gave a playful wink to his audience "He's as fan as gazelle as me. Yes Nick, it's possible. But well, how to say that. He wanted to help me lose weight."

"I don't really get how it's an issue." said Judy, with a puzzled expression.

"He was a bit insistant, too insistant. Like he couldn't understant that I didn't want to lose weight. Not that I specifically want to be fat, but to me, being thin is not worth the effort." He's voice slowly died down as he seemed embarassed by what he was saying.

"What I think Ben's trying to say is : he has learnt to love himself like he is, quality and flaws. Being chubby is a part of him he has learnt to accept. It's not a reluctant compromise." Said the wolf.

"It's not anymore. But he didn't seem to be able to accept it. So I ended it."

"You want to be fully accepted. I get that Ben." Nick put his paw on his friend's shoulder. "Takes gut, pun slightly intended, to not compromise on the matter. I think you were right to dump his ass."

They all chuckled and the joke made the cheetah smile.

"Thanks guys, I really needed to talk about this."

"We're friends Ben, it's what we are here for."

The bowls of sorbet were quickly emptied after the conversation and they went to chill on the couch and armchairs, Nick and Judy sitting next to one another. They both had to keep their paws off eachother.

"You're a really good cook Ben. Mammal of many talents."

"You don't get this body by only eating donuts." the chubby cheetah joked.

He was looking at them in a peculiar manner, as if he was waiting for something. The bunny and fox looked at one another and nodded.

"Okay guys, you asked sooner what we did with our week. For my part, I had a little trip to bunny-burrows"

The cheetahs face had brighten to a large expectant grin. Nick couldn't resist making him wait a bit.

"Mainly to taste the local's specialties. I don't care much for carrots, but let me tell you, their carrot brandy is something else. Anyway, it's not the reason why I went. You see, so much rabbit in the same place, the fox that I am had to see it with his own eyes."

Clawhauser was on the edge of his seat, bouncing in place, claws about to pierce the cushion.

"Oh, and I declared to our little bunny officer here." he said, kissing her between the ears, sending tingles in her spine.  
The feline reactin was exactly what he expected. He put his paws on his cheeks and-

"DAAAAAAAAAAWWWWW"

"Crap, lost my bet." said Wolford.

"There was a betting pool on wether we'd end up together ?" asked Judy. "Really guys ?"

"Nope, it was a bet on _when_ we'd end up together." answered Nick.

"How do you know about this ? And why did you not talk to me about it ?" She made a pause and squinted her eyes "If you put any money in it-"

"There are limits to my slyness Carrots. And I didn't tell you about it mainly because you'd have freaked out. And maybe because deep down, I didn't want to compromise my chances."

"How much did you bet, Ben ?" asked the wolf.

"You know I don't take part on the precinct's bet." answered the cheetah with an innocent expression.

"I know you did on this one."

"Okay, one hundred, on it being this week. We'll have to tell Fangmeyer."

"Why ?" asked the bunny.

"He's the one holding the betting pool."

"Guys, I'd appreciate if you kept things under wraps. We want to figure out how this will work out before going official." The fox had his serious face on. "Not that I don't find all this betting funny, and you know I'm the first to be in on those chenanigans-"

"When you don't instigate them" remarked Wolford.

"-but this time, it's important. It's not a thing that we want to be made public. At least not for now."

"Alright, I'll try to call it off with Fangmeyer. But you may want to talk about it with Blackfur."

"Yeah she's really observant and receptive. Even by being prudent, it won't take her a week before she catches up on us. I prefer to tell her myself than to let her discover it." said Judy.

"Oh, okay. I'll let you handle it." Nick deliberately avoided the panda. He had nothing against her, but she could read people too well, and it made him uneasy.  
Friendship and dating between officers and partners wasn't forbidden, but it could bring a whole lot of problems legal-wise. Plus, a reaction of an officer toward an another wouldn't be the same if said officer was his or her mate. In any case, since they were both from different species, it was easier to hide it than to deal with the reaction. And they were certain the second they would leave the closet, the press would put its eyes on them and never let go. First fox officer and first bunny officer dating : juicy story.

They continued talking about their week, what they did at the festival, how Judy's family had reacted to her being with a fox. Their friends showed to be quite supportive. Nick didn't talk about how he had reunited with his mother, it being a bit too personnal to share. No one beside the chief and his lieutenent knew about the details of his past in the precinct. And it was the way he wanted it to be.

At the end of the day, Nick and Judy left their friends and went home, watching a movie before going to bed.

* * *

 **More of a fluffy chapter, isn't it ? I thought the change of pace would be good.**


	16. 16 The Ticket Hustle

**Hello my dear readers. I'd like to kick this off by answering the reviews.**

 **Foxlover91 : They weren't really caught in the act. More like interrupted... Okay, slightly the same thing. Sometimes relationship work sometimes they don't. And who could be owrthy of our favorite chubby cheetah ? As for what will happen at the ZPD... Let just say it will be a late developpment.**

 **Fox in the hen house : No van burning ! This vehicle is a work of art, you monster !**

 **Guest : Maybe it's easier for a cheetah, I was more interested in the personnal and emotional implications of this debate in the relationship. Maybe I should also have done a chapter or two on the development of said relationship, but it wasn't something I felt I could write properly.**

 **And without further ado, the chapter !**

* * *

"Assignments : Officers Grizzoli, Fangmeyer, Snarlov, Rhinowitz, patrol duty. Clawfith, Pennington, Swat support, report to Tundratown's precinct in forty."All agents left their seats one after the ohers. "Hopps, Wilde, parking duty, whole week. Dismissed"

"What ?" They reacted as the last officers were leaving the room. Chief Bogo waited for the room to be empty before saying.

"After how you messed up a week ago, officer Wilde, you didn't think I'd let you off the hook that easily ?"

"But, officer Hop-"

"-Is your senior officer and as such, she shares the blame. Except if you want to do two weeks of parking duty alone."

"No sir." answered Judy before Nick could.

"Thought as much. Have fun. Dismissed."

The two partners went and put on the metter maid's vests, hopping in the joke-mobile and leaving the precinct's parking lot.

"Sorry Carrots, should've known this would happen."

"Don't worry, I kind of saw it coming. And there was no way I would let you do two weeks of parking duty alone. I don't want to share a flat with a depressed fox."  
Nick was browsing the web on his phone as Judy pulled over near a large blue car, probably a hippo's or elephant's. The guy had been parked for at least an hour as suggested the parking metter. Nick wrote a ticket and put it on the windshield.

"Pick up the pace carrots, or this fox will win the ticket race." The shit-eating grin was back.

"You really want to turn this into a contest ?" She asked playfully as she was writing a ticket for another car.

"Why not, I don't think we have anything better to do. If you're afraid of losing, just say it."

"I have the most ticket distributed in one day slick. No way I'll lose."

"Then how about a little wager. By the end of the shift, we compare who wrote the most tickets. If I win, I get to groom your ears tonight."  
Judy's face turned red instantly. Grooming ears was an intimate act to bunnies. By a family member, it was a show of love and trust, by a mate, it meant something else entirely. She was about to explain it to Nick, but at his expression, she understood he knew exactly what he was suggesting. The fox had made his homework.

"And what if I win ?"

"You get to groom my tail."  
Nick let her touch his tail occasionnaly, but he flinched when she did without asking first. He sometimes inconsciouly wrapped her in it when they were lying in bed or watching a movie. As she understood, grooming a fox's tail was as intimate as doing so with bunny's ears.

"Nice, I always wanted to do this."

"You haven't won yet, Fluff. Condition though, we park the joke-mobile here, no using it. We don't have to take a pause for a meal this noon. Is that okay with you ?"

"Geographical limits ?"

"None, you can get to another district if you want. Though I doubt our good chief Buffalo Butt will be happy with it."  
Judy snickered, the childish nickname always made her laugh, even if she knew it shouldn't.

"Okay, I'm game. We compare results here at 5PM."

They shook on it.

"Good luck Fluff-butt."

"Good luck Slick."

And like this, they went their separate ways. He never would've made this wager with her in normal circonstances. She would flat-out leave him in the dust. But those weren't normal circumstances. He had a nice hand to play and if he could gain anything by playing it, he wouldn't hesitate.

* * *

Nick was leaning against the joke-mobile. He had a bored expression and was on his smartphone, browsing furbook and Nyangag. He looked at the time 4:45PM. He had arrived fifteen minutes ago and knowing Judy, she would use every seconds of the remaining time to ensure her victory.

Just as he had foreseen, she arrived at 4:58, a bounce in her step.

"Guess which bunny broke all previous records and will get to groom her lovely fox's tail ?"

She showed him her ticket machine. 487. Nick's face was still showing his trademark grin, not even batting an eye.

"I don't know, you'll have to introduce me, because it's certainly not you."

He showed his own ticket machine. 532.

"Could've done better, but I found this guy who was selling those delicious hot-dogs. I had to make a quick nap for digestion."  
Judy's mouth hanged slightly open.

"It's impossible." she articulated.

"Or is it ?" He took out his phone and showed her the screen. She read it.

"Today, at the Rainforest Convention Center, the Sloth in the City conference, or 'how to thrive in a company as a slow worker.'. A sloth convention."

The level of mischievousness on Nick's face got over all previously set records. She heard a faint purring coming from his throat. If dictionnaries needed an illustration for 'smug', his face at this moment would have been perfect.

"Nick ?" there was exasperation in her voice.

"Yes ?" said the voice of pure innocence.

"Did you know this before offering the wager ?"

"You wound me Carrots, as if I could be such a vile creature. Luring you into this kind of trap... I would never dare."

"Really ?"

"Of course ! This vile, never. But this sly..."

She punched his shoulder.

"Hey ! No punching. I won fair and square."

"You won, but I wouldn't call if faire and square." she pouted.

 _Did I upset her ?_

The fox rose his paws in an apologising gesture.

"Carrots, if you don't want me to groom your ears, that's okay. I can give you a massage or something else."

"I just forget how 'hustling' you can be. I like it, I really do, it's part of the reason I fell for you. It's just a bit upsetting. I feel dumb when I fall for your tricks."

He kissed her between her ears.

"Hey, look at me." He planted his emerald gaze into her mesmerising amethyst eyes. "You're not a dumb bunny. You hustled me, sweetheart. You hustled a fox. But you can't win them all."

They had parked the joke-mobile into the precinct's parking lot, put back their vests in place and walked back to Nick's flat. On the way, they had bought take out.  
Every time Judy entered Nick's place, she felt a rush of joy. It was her boyfriend's place, but it was her's too. Nick put down the food on the coffe table they had bought together at the end of their vacation.

"Ahhh" groaned Nick, as he slumped in the sofa. "There's nothing like food and a couch after a hard day of work."

"It wasn't such hard day."

"Not to you, if you had written tickets as I did, maybe you'd be tired too."

She punched him playfully.

"Har har. Hilarious."

"I thought so too. Let's eat, I'm so famished, I could eat a whole bunny." he joked.

"We'll see about that later."

Nick's heart skipped a beat and he struggled to not let it show.

...

They were slumped on the couch. A movie was playing as Judy slowly felt sleep come to her. Suddenly, she felt something strange on her left ear. Some sort of scratching. It was really nice and she didn't bother checking what it was.  
Slowly, came a brush on her ear's fur, getting to the more sensitive parts, sending shiver in her body and waking her instantly.

"Nick, what are you doing ?"

"Well, I'm cashing in my bet. You don't have to stay awake."

"As if I could sleep while you're doing this."

She straightened up, and looked at him. Something pulled her gaze.

"You have a grooming kit ?"

"Yep, I've bought it a while ago, it was supposed to be a gift but I forgot about it until this morning. Now turn around."

"You're sure you know how to do this ?"

"It must not be that different from tail-grooming. Worst case scenario, I'll improvise."

Nick had never brushed rabbit ears before, but to Judy, it was the best grooming she ever had. He went from the base of the ear to the top, slowly, as to catch every stray strand of hair.  
Every brush stroke sent tingles in Judy's stomach and she closed her eyes. Soon after, she felt Nick's tail wrap around her. She risked a paw and stroked it lightly. Usually, if Nick didn't fell comfortable, he would waggle it to keep it out of her reach, but this time he let her.  
Between the brush stroke, he began kissing her neck. She let escape a giggle, as it tickled her. Then he gave her a light nibble at the same place.

"It's usually not part of the grooming process..."

"Improvisation. Do you want me to stop ?"

"Nope."

He continued grooming her ears, while nibbling at her neck. Each time she felt his fangs, it sent shivers down her spine. His hand went down her ears to her shoulder, gently massaging her, ridding her of the day's stress. She let out a moan of delight.

"Could you keep doing this forever ?"

"You mean this ?"

She felt his fangs on her neck again. New shiver.

"This too." She got rid of her shirt. "Easier to massage without it."

"Take off your bra while you're at it" he half-joked.

The bra came off. The fox gulp. The massage resumed.

As he continued massaging her, his nibbling went from her neck to the base of her ears. She turned to face him and gave him a long kiss.

"Seems unfair to me."

"What ?"

"That I'm the only one half-naked." she answered, as she helped him off his shirt. They kissed again, going from tenderness to passionnate in the blink of an eye. His claws were running along her spine and explored every point of her athletic back. Their gaze locked, they both lost themselves in eachother's eyes for a few second. The fox took a slight inspiration, took her up in his arms bridal style and march to the bedroom while nuzzling her belly. Judy giggled and kissed his snout several time as to keep it at bay.

He put her down on the sheet and lay down at her side, brushing her ribs with a claw. They kissed again feeling a burning sensation coming from inside, slowly taking over their bodies and minds. His claws were buried in her fur and she caressed her chest with her paws.

Between two moans she articulated "What happenned to being reasonable ?"

"It stayed with your bra in the living room." he whispered in her neck.

In a matter of seconds, pants and remaining underwear were discarded, their bodies pressed against one another felt like dancing flame, paws exploring, snouts nuzzling, fangs nibbling and mouths kissing.

They pulled from eachother, loud breathes, love and desire in their interlocked eyes.

"Will you be my mate Judy ?"

"I will Nick. I love you."

"I love you too."

They let go of every last things that held them back. Fear, doubts, uncertainties, frustrations.

And primal instincts took over.

* * *

 **I'll leave the rest to your imagination ;)**

 **The sloth convention hustle has been stolen (Yes stolen ! See what a vile monster I can prove to be !) from the story One Hundred Kisses by Cimar of Tularis WildHopps. I highly recommend you read it, it's awesome.**

 **I've got some good news, some bad news and some worse news.**

 **The good news is, this chapter being really short, I will post another one in two days.**

 **The bad news is that there won't be a third chapter this week contrary to what I do when my chapters are this short.**

 **The worse news is that the next chapter will be the last...**

 **OF PART 1 !**

 **More details in two days.**


	17. 17 Bonds

**Disclaimer : I highly suggest your read the afterwords. Really.**

 **Review time :**

 **Fox in the Hen House : As a matter of fact, I originally wanted to write a full sex scene, but I could not do it properly to save my life, so you will get stuck with foreplay ;)**  
 **More seriously, for those who could fear, or look forward to this kind of stuff, though there probably will be other kinky scenes, I will don't think I'll go into the details of what's happening under the sheets.**

 **And now, the chapter ! I hope you'll enjoy it.**

* * *

Judy woke up with a fleeting head. The sensation was strange, different. This night had been wonderful, and she knew it was because how strong her feelings toward her mate were. She took a look at her phone. 4AM. They'd have to get up in two hours. She went to the bathroom, and then to the kitchen, to drink a glass of water. As she came back to the room, she saw the sheets move. Had she woken Nick ?

She lied down, crawling toward him. She felt arms wrapping her, and a slight groan coming to her ears. Nick cuddled her in his sleep. She felt a nudge in her neck, the snout of her lover nuzzling her. She repressed a giggle and relaxed herself, trying to go back to sleep.

A nibble. This was definitely a nibble. She turned her head to look at the fox. Still sleeping. She went back to her initial position, surely he had done it in his sleep.

Second nibble.

"Nick ?" She whispered. "Are you awake ?"

"How could I sleep, when you're rubbing your cute little butt against my-" And elbow nudge shut him up.

"Go back to sleep, dumb fox."

"I'm afraid you woke up a hungry predator. Do you know what predators do when they'are awake and hungry ?"

"No ?" she asked in a meek voice.

"They hunt !" he said, fiddling the doe's tail with his paw.

"Meep !" In a half-second she had shot out of bed and was on the other side of the room.

 _Did I scare her ?_

"Well, fierce predator-" she said while walking toward the door "If you want to eat this cute little bunny-" she opened it, turning around, showing her back to him, "come and hunt it !" she waggle her little tail, sending spikes of desire in the predator's brain. She had stepped in the living room, and dodged his grasp as he lundged to catch her, losing his step and stumbling against the back of the sofa. For a half-second, she was worried, but he went back on all four, chasing her around the appartment. If she didn't want him to catch, she could have avoided it, being more proficient than him in close quarter combat. But she let him get her, rolling around on the floor.

He had a large predatory smile, full of sharp fangs, as he began kissing and cuddling her, barely letting her any time to breathe.

 _It should frighten me, but it's the complete opposite. Worst survival instincts ever._

Each one of his movement, each caress seemed like it could sense where she wanted to be touched. There was something faint in the edge the bunny's subconscious that was pulling at her mind. As Nick's paws explored her, she let herself go and suddenly time seemed to slow down. Her fox's scent filled her, his contact was burning with more passion than before, every sense, every fiber of her body was turned toward him. The feeling was uncanny. If the last evening, sex had been tender and loving, she felt like doing something else. She rolled and pushed him on his back. Their eyes locked and she could hear a faint growl growing from his throat. She answered in echo. He bared his teeth in lust, and she did the same, slowly leaning forward, extending a paw reaching for him. He emitted a slight gasp as her paw found its target and began moving. A predatory grin grew on the doe's face as Nick couldn't keep himself from moaning and panting..

...

They hadn't gone back to sleep, they even almost skipped breakfast and barely made it in time to the precinct after a shared shower. Highly necessary shower. Nick knew foxes' mating instinct were strong but he could never anticipate how heavy they would weigh on him. Every instant, he had to fight himself to keep from touching, caressing, kissing his bunny. His bunny.

More than emotional attraction, it came from the farthest, deepest part of himself. A primal storm threatening to take control from the mammal at any time.  
They were rolling around in the joke-mobile when Judy noticed the strange behaviour of her mate. His mood was all over the place, his ears and tail were violently twitching and his claws were buried in his palm. She pulled over to ask him about it.

"Nick, is everything okay ?"

"Mating instincts. They're crazy strong. If what bunny feel without hormonal suppressant is any close to this, I shouldn't have made fun of it."

"How do you feel ?"

"Great and horrible at the same time. I'm happy to be with you, but I really, and mean really want to- uhm. Basically, I want to be closer, and mostly naked."  
Each breathe of her scent sent made him want to pull her closer, kiss her, to not give a crap about the civilian who could be watching.

"Oh. Do you want to call in sick ?"

"Right after our vacation ? No, I'll be okay. Besides, I don't think hormonal fox is a valid reason for sick leave. Tell you what, why don't we separate for now ? I think being close to you is not the best idea right now. I feel like I might jump on you at any time."  
The idea made the bunny blush. She found herself not to be completely opposed to it. They agreed they should work sperately for the day and went on opposite ways.

Nick had written a couple of tickets, but whatever he did, his thought would jump back at the rabbit. That was how foxes felt toward their mate. It was the bond.

 _You're alright. You're okay, you're just doing your job, away from Judy, because you're a complete hormonal mess right now. She can take care of herself, of a few ticket while you're taking care of yours. She's big enough to do her job alone._

 _Alone._

 _And if she gives a ticket to the wrong guy ? She's not big, if the guy gets pissed, she could get easily hurt !_

Nick was about to turn around and get back to his mate.

 _No. She's alright. Nothing to worry about. She knows how to take care of herself. It's not as if she would end up face to face with one of those drugged asshat going around with guns in their pockets._

Nick had stopped dead in his track. A sensation pulling at the back of his mind, but he couldn't tell if it was real or the product of his newfound paranoia. He smelled the air. Definitely something strange here. Smell of anger and frustration. Judy was in trouble.

He sprinted back to the last place he had seen her. She wasn't here, he looked around, smelled the air again and was able to make out the direction she had gone.

Sprinting again, he could hear the shouting voices but not comprehend what they were saying.  
An angry hippo was leaning over the bunny, as she was writing a ticket. And clearly he was pissed.

Nick mind came from hazy to full protection mode, he went at a controlled pace and placed himself slightly behind his mate. Judy didn't react at her boyfriend approaching, but she felt his paws on her shoulder, that he had placed in a protective way.

"Hello good sir, is there a problem ?"

The hippo was slightly taken aback by Nick's arrival, but he didn't stop shouting at the now two officers.

"Yes, there is ! Your colleague is writing me a ticket, for only ten minutes over !"

"I understand that you're upset, but we're only doing our job."

"Your job ? Your job is paid my taxes. No wonder you two are on metter duty, no way a rabbit and a fox could make a proper cop !"

Nick felt the tension in Judy's shoulder. She had hardened enough to not get upset by those kinds of comment, but it didn't mean she liked it. The fox had to struggle to not show how the civilian's remark had made his blood boil.

"We worked as much as any officer to get where we are. No one made us any favor. Now sir, before you say anything you could regret to an officer of the law, I highly suggest you calm down, take your ticket and get going."

Judy felt the tension of her fox simply by his contact. Everything about him was different. His calm and nonchalent demeanor had disappeared.  
The hippo's attitude seemed to change slightly, fright crept under the angry expression.

"She shouldn't have writ-"

Nick cut him mid-sentence, taking the ticket from Judy's paw and pinning it on the prey mammal's belly with a claw.

"Sir, if you have any grievance, you can contest your ticket in traffic court. Now get."

Judy glanced at the fox. Everything in his attitude claimed his dominance over the prey mammal. He staired down the hippo, who let his shoulder slump, turned around and left.

"Nick, what the hell was this ?"

"This was me putting back a civilian in his place."

He looked down at her, she was thumping, an annoyed look on her face.

"No, this was not. This was you bullying a civilian into submission." her tone changed from annoyed to upset.

"He had no right to shout at you." Nick felt a uneasyness creep in the back of his mind.

"That's my problem, I can protect myself." upset to pissed off.

"But-" his shoulder had slumped, he looked like he was making himself smaller.

"No buts, officer Wilde. If a civilian comes at me, you let me handle it myself. I don't need your protection, I'm an officer as much as you are !" she almost shouted, her anger rising dangerously.

Judy being upset at Nick, he felt cold spikes of remorse embed themselves into his mind.

"That's not what I meant ! He was- I was- " He felt her anger toward him like physical pain. The fox pinched his eyes and raised a paw breathing slowly. "Let's calm down. Stop shouting at me, please." He sighed. "I can't handle you shouting at me right now." died his voice.

Immediately, Judy calmed down, a worried expression replacing the angry one. Nick clearly wasn't in his usual emotional state.

"Nick are you alright ?"

"Nope." He sat down on the seat of the joke-mobile. "So not fucking alright. This bonding thing is making a number on me."

"Care to elaborate ?" she sat next to him, waiting expectantly.

He took a few breathe, slowly regaining his composure.

"Okay, here's the thing. I have a hard time keeping my paws off you, each time I see you, I feel drawn toward you. And if I don't see you, I can't stop thinking that you're in danger, that something is happenning or about to happen to you. But that's not the only thing. I inconsciously search for your scent. I thought letting some space between us would help but that's the exact opposite."

"Isn't there something like hormones supressents, similar to rabbit's, that you could take ?"

"Nope. It's usually only an inconvenience to foxes, so not a big deal for the rest of society. I'll be okay, I just need to keep you in visual range. And plug my ears if another civilian comes to bother you."

She squeezed his shoulder compationately.

"Okay, alright. I don't understand everything about this 'bonding thing', so let me ask this : how long will it last ?"

"If you mean the bond, probably years, I hope. If you mean my current state, I'd say about a week tops, four to five days if we're lucky. Afterwards, it slowly calms down. It's the early stage of the bonding that are the most- how to say this- emotionally violent." He made a slight pause, trying to put his thoughts in order "It's actually a good thing we're on parking duty. I'll be able to practice handling those emotions on the field, but with fewer risks."

Even in this state, his mind could focus on the practical side of things. The rest of the day, followed by the rest of the week passed without major incident. Nick let his partner handle the angry civilians, occasionnaly sending deadly glances to cool them down when he felt they were too threatening to his mate. Which was most of the time.

Time went by in a sort of haze for both mammals. Day was composed of ticket writing and night were composed of cuddles, kisses and lots of sex. Judy was impressed on how a fox could be able to follow a near bunny rythm.

As the week neared its end, Nick felt more and more stable, even being able to leave his mate alone for more than a few minutes without freaking out. Good thing because hearing him scratching at the door while she was on the toilet would surely have driven her crazy.

...

Nick went and slumped on the couch, it was finally their day off. He felt tired, not that the week had been physically hard, but his emotional state had taken a toll on him. On surface, he was the same again. He could as easily put and discard the masks, use calm and composed expressions, joke. But deep down, instincts, subconscious, they had greatly shifted, the bunny occupying a large part of it. And he loved it.

He heard Judy open the fridge and went to help her prepare their meal, probably left-overs from the day before.

"Nick what are you doing ?"

"I'm helping you rummaging in the fridge."

"That is not the fridge you are 'rummaging', silly fox."

"Woopsie, my bad." he said lifting his paws from where they were a moment before.

They put the food in plate and went to sit on the couch.

"How was the day for your troubled mind ?" she joked.

"It was okay. I've had the urge to maim civilian only two times so definitely an improvement."

"Good. I hope you will be able to keep the death stares at bay, it's not the image you should want to give as the first fox officer."

Although the bunny wasn't completely joking, it made Nick chuckle. Part of the change he had experienced was in how he reacted to conflict. He had some trouble with angry mammals but as long as their anger was directed at him, he had had no problem being his own charming and conflict-avoiding self. But as soon as Judy had gotten involved, his attitude immediately shifted to protective, and even downright dominant.

Before, if anyone had said to him he could stood up to mammals twice his size, he wouldn't have believed it. Now it seemed almost natural to him. He didn't know if he liked this or not yet.

Judy had noticed it too, her new partner's demeanor puzzled her. Sure, Nick was a confident mammal, or at least, it was what he showed. But the intimidating trait, it was the first time she had seen it. She trusted her partner to learn how to control it and use it in the right situation, but for now, he was still in a discovering phase.  
Since appart from his first outburst, it hadn't shown to be an issue yet, she decided to not bring it up again. But she promised herself to not back down from the problem if the need arose to take care of it.

...

"Nick ?"

She was nestled, half-naked, in his arms. He had arranged the sheets and pillows to make sort of a little burrow. At first he had done it for fun, like a pillow fort, but during the week it had ended up becoming a habit. They both felt some sort of serenity buried and protected by the soft walls of their shelter.

"Yes Carrots ?"

"I've seen how you got because of the bond during the first few days since being, uhm-"

"Official mates ?" he proposed.

"Yes, official mates. I can't stop asking myself, what would've happenned if I had been a vixen ?"

"Two things : first you wouldn't have been this fluffy." He nuzzled her neck, sending her in a fit of giggles. "and second, you probably would've been the first vixen officer."

"I'm talking about the bonding thing, you silly fox."

" _Your_ silly fox. I get what you're asking. If we would've both been foxes, taking sick leave would've been necessary."

"Really ?"

"Yeah. My mom told me that when she and dad mated, they had to stay home for a whole week. Trust me if you will, but compared to them, I was really calm and composed. And I am talking mood strings as much as sex. A few neighbors even went to complain because of the noise."

Judy hid her mouth with her paw, slightly blushing and giggling. Nick had no problem sharing his family history, even the private details that most people would keep under wrap. He never bothered wrapping the fact in silk fabric, stating things as they were. As long as it didn't directly involved him. Of course, she knew he would keep for himself the things he deemed to private to the parties involved in the events he related.

"As my mom told me 'when the third one came to knock, I thought I would rip the fucker's head off and shove it up his ass' but dad was able to keep her from doing so. Dad was the most protective and kept them out of trouble, she was more aggressive."

"Where do you think you stand on that spectrum ?"

"Honestly ? I don't know. I can make up a few hypothesis though, one of them being that since you aren't a vixen, I may end up having both the protectiveness and the aggressivity in equal parts. If that's so, I rather like it. You know me" he joked "I'm all about balance."

"Would it have been less complicated if I was a vixen ?"

Judy couldn't help to feel a little guilty about what the fox was going through. Because of her, he had to face situation few individuals of his species had faced before.

"Less complicated ? Yeah, but not only because of the bond. I'm more apprehensive of the social repercussions, as well as how difficult our job could become. And I don't wish to compromise the thing you've worked the most toward to throughout your life."

Nick had a more altruistic nature than he had shown during their first encounter. He was slowly revealing it to her and he was aware of it.

To anyone else he would have kept it hidden, but he wanted her to know. She made him want to become a better mammal, but that he could never admit.

"So again, yeah. The situation's complicated and how things will evolve are uncertain. This will turn crazier than it is now, and we'll have to fight to pull through, of that I am certain." He squeezed her inside his arms, a predatory and defying grin addressed to the world. "And as I said before, I can't wait to be part of it."

 _The End_

 _Of Part One_

* * *

 **And it's a wrap.**

 **Part One was always intended to be a story on its own, even though I've (intentionnally) let a few of loose ends. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. (I don't think it's possible, I've had the time of my life on this work)**

 **I know it's not really elegant to ask for this, but I'd really appreciate some full-fledged reviews of this work. I'm trying to improve my writing and it really would help :)**

 **I'd like to thank in chronological order of review _QsiM0t0_ , _Foxlover91_ , _gonekrazy3000_ , _SS Killroze_ , _Fox in the hen house_ , _Saforite154_ , _jamdea_ , _Robert Escher_ , and a _guest_ for having taken the time to leave a kind word, but also everyone that read that story.**

 **You guys are awesome and expect more of my work in the future.**

 **Meaning : expect it next week because that's when I'll start publishing part 2.**

 **That's right guys, part 2 starts next week, please contain your excitment :)**

* * *

 **The original ending included a joke stolen to TGWeaver and his comic The Late Stake. (Hilarious stuff, go find it.) But it's really better without it, gives it a better sense of accomplishment.**

 **I'll put it there for you to enjoy. You could see this as an after-credit scene.**

Judy buried herself more into her fox's chest, his words had reassured her. She decided they didn't to talk more about the topic.

"I don't know if I said it before, but I love this idea of your to arrange the bed in this makeshift den."

"You know how I love to bury myself in your little bunny-burrow."

She blushed instantly, having perfectly understood the dirty joke underneath his remark. She sent an elbow in his ribs, but not hard enough to hurt him.

"Nick !"

"What ? It's warm, and nice and I love it." His tone was still filled with humour as he was nibbling at her ears.

She turned around, pushing him on his back and sitting on his belly, slowly rubbing herself against him, approaching her face from his with a naughty smile.

"You know, it's more of a foxhole now."

 **Yep, I have no shame ;)**


End file.
